In Greater Manchester, around £30m is set aside every year to support those bus services with too few passengers to turn a profit. In London, that figure is £800m.
Even taking into account the capital’s much bigger network, it’s a significant funding gap. In London, subsidised services are funded through other modes of transport, business rates and congestion charging. It’s a model currently impossible to replicate in Manchester.
These subsidised routes often run to more isolated areas and communities, arguably to those who need them the most. Away from the frenetic corridors of Oxford Road, these services are likely to carry far fewer passengers - and make less profit for the firms which operate them.
