Transport leaders in Greater Manchester are celebrating today after picking up a clutch of awards.
At the North of England Transport Awards on 7 December, hosted by Transport Times, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) was named Combined Authority of the Year in recognition of continued improvements to the region’s transport network.
The judges noted that TfGM has introduced one of the largest smart ticketing schemes outside of London, ‘get me there’. Passengers can now buy a range of multi-operator tickets on a smartcard that can be used on buses across Greater Manchester.
Perhaps the biggest winner of the night was the Leigh to Ellenbrook guided busway as TfGM and the busway’s construction company, Balfour Beatty, collected the award for Construction and Engineering Project of the Year. This recent accolade marks the fifth industry award for the project since opening in spring 2016.
The 4.5-mile bus-only busway is a first for the North West and forms a flagship element of TfGM’s bus priority package, alongside the transformation of the Oxford Road corridor in the city centre. Representing the largest investment in Greater Manchester’s bus network in decades, the £122 million package will enable people to enjoy faster, more punctual and more reliable bus services across the region.
TfGM, First Manchester and Wigan, Salford and Manchester City Councils also earned the award for Transport Project of the Year for the launch of Vantage service, along the Busway, A580 and into the Regional Centre, serving communities in Leigh, Atherton, Tyldesley and Salford.
Since Vantage launched in April this year, it has already carried over one million customers and a recent survey found that a fifth of passengers have switched from their cars – which equates to 460,000 fewer cars on the roads over a year. The service currently sees more than 50,000 passengers pass through its doors each week.
Metrolink’s expansion was also recognised as its operator, RATP Dev, collected the award for Public Transport Operator of the Year. Now the UK’s largest light rail system, Metrolink carries over 36 million passengers each year and that number will continue to rise with the opening of Second City Crossing early next year and the future expansion to Trafford Park.
Councillor Andrew Fender, Chair of the Transport for Greater Manchester Committee, attended the event. He said: “It’s fantastic that TfGM and our partners have been recognised in multiple categories at the North of England Transport Awards. This event brings organisations together to celebrate achievements in providing efficient, high quality transport services across the region.
“As well as celebrating award wins, we’re proud that TfGM was highly commended in two categories. Our Clean Air for Schools project, which aims to deliver significant environmental benefits and reduce children’s exposure to harmful air pollutants, was commended in the Contribution to Sustainable Transport category and our very own Customer Support Officer, Bradley Taylor was commended in the Frontline Employee of the Year category.
“It has been a very successful year and we look forward to delivering more award-winning projects in the future.”