“This is the only bus that gets me to work on time,” says Caitlyn Lamb, as she waits for the number 11 service from Cheadle to her utility firm job in Edgeley. The 26-year-old sets off each morning from Woodford, near Stockport’s border with Cheshire, getting the 42B bus to Cheadle, then hopping on the number 11 to arrive at work on the other side of the borough in good time.
But the future of these services - and dozens of others across Greater Manchester appears to be uncertain. Operators - including Stagecoach, First and Arriva - intend to cut 33 ‘non-viable’ services altogether from October 30, as the government’s Covid recovery funding comes to an end. A further 32 would either run less often or have shortened routes.
A £15m plan to save the routes and maintain service levels as best as possible has been hatched by transport bosses - but it hinges on finding new operators to run axed services and agreeing subsidies to keep others running as often as they do now.
READ MORE : How Greater Manchester bus cuts could affect you if last ditch rescue plan fails
Councillor David Meller, of the Greater Manchester Transport Committee, has warned there would be ‘devastating’ impact on the network should it fail. And Caitlyn - who sometimes uses another under-threat service, the 379, to get to Bramhall after work - is one of commuters who stand to bear the brunt.
But she points out it isn’t just adults travelling to and from work who would be affected. “The 11 is a great bus because it goes to the Academy where I used to go [to school] In Edgeley - it’s a main route for teenagers to get to school if they’re coming from Cheadle or Stockport,” she says.
Stockport could be one of the hardest hit boroughs should the rescue package fail, with nine services set to be axed all together such as the 379 and 11A - and a further five facing ‘frequency reductions’, such as the 11 and 383 circular to Bredbury.
The 42B is listed for ‘part’ deregistration but, at the time of writing neither TfGM or Stagecoach had confirmed how this would affect the service. Other services that would be pulled entirely include the 313 that connects Stockport to Manchester Airport and the circular 328 service which serves areas of Cheadle, Adswood and Edgeley.
Back on Cheadle High Street, another early morning commuter - who asks not to be named - is waiting for the 11A to get to her job in Gorton. “I work at Tan Yard Brow in Gorton, so I need that bus,” says the professional dog-groomer.
“I think it would be pretty awful, because it means you would not be able to get anywhere because there’s only the 11A now. It’s really bad at the moment, because the bus never turns up when it’s supposed to. But it would be awful because it’s the only bus we can get from here to Stockport or Edgeley.”
It’s also a big concern for commuter Pete Drury. Although the 52-year-old is a Cheadle resident, he’s currently looking after his parents in Brinnington - commuting to Cheadle and back every day for his cleaning job.
Losing the 11A or reductions to the 11 would be a real blow for him. “I would be buggered,” he says ruefully.
“I would probably have to walk because I can’t afford a taxi every day, it would cost me a fortune.”
And Pete thinks there are many more Stopfordians would find themselves in the same difficult situation. “You see the same old faces in the mornings, you get to know everyone,” he adds. “ I think a lot of people would be in the same boat.”
A fellow passenger, who asked not to be named, works as a physio at the MRI. “I would not be able to get to work, I share a car with my partner but can’t always have it,” she says. “It would take me longer to get to work, so I would potentially need to get a second vehicle.
Vegard Henriksen, an IT worker at The Christie, is in a similar position. “I probably would not be able to work as easily, says the 29-year-old. “I would have a longer commute to work and have to get up earlier.”
The financial implications are obvious - as is the potential for bus cuts to force people back into cars, very much against the clean air and ‘active travel’ agenda.
Meanwhile, Natalie Terry is waiting for the 42B bus to take her into the city centre. She’s not a regular passenger, but is using public transport this morning after leaving her car at work overnight so she could go out.
“It’s really convenient, particularly if you want to go drinking in town and you want to drive,” she says. “And also, Cheadle isn’t very well connected, it’s quite a walk to Gatley or the tram stop [East Didsbury] so to have the bus stop is really handy.”
On the opposite side of the road, Michael Rice is concerned about what changes to the 42B service could mean for him. He catches the bus every day to get from Cheadle to his job at a fencing firm in Cheadle Hulme.
The 62-year-old, who describes the proposed cuts to services as ‘terrible’, worries that cuts could have a big impact on his life. “I would have to walk, probably - I rely on it,” he adds.
Ged Humphreys, has similar concerns. “I think I would not be able to get to work as easily as I do now," he says. "I use public transport to get to work."
And he also questions why the services are coming under threat. “When I travel in the mornings, the buses are full enough,” he adds. “You don’t know if they’re travelling to work or going into Stockport [for other things], but it’s a reliable bus service.”
People have also taken to social media to express their concerns over the ‘disgusting’ proposals - including Mandy Merron, from Cheadle Hulme. “I often hear people say Cheadle hulme is posh and the people wealthy but that is not true for many,” she says.
“We are retired and use the bus frequently as do many of our friends. My husband has a bus pass but not me at 61! Free bus passes are available in Scotland and Wales over 60. If the 42b goes there will be no service for Woodford, Bramhall, Cheadle Hulme, Cheadle to Didsbury at all.”
Sally Schofield get the 42B twice a week on her journey to see a friend at Salford Royal, and says it would be ‘terrible’ were the service to be cut. She says the service is needed and well-used by older people and students.
Her sentiments are shared by Sarah Miller, also of Cheadle Hulme.“If you cancel or reduce this service the only other option to get to town by bus from Cheadle hulme is to get either the 313 or 368 into Stockport and then the 192 or similar,” she says.
“This has previously doubled my journey time especially at peak travelling times. Why do the prices keep increasing when the services are reduced and do not operate to stated timetable times and also finish early and therefore isolate whole towns and villages?”
Concerns are no less keenly felt in Heald Green, a village near in the south west of the borough, close to Manchester airport.“I don’t drive so rely on the buses and I live in Heald Green so the 378 and 379 and 130 are a godsend to get to Handforth Dean,” Margaret Rose tells the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
“I have to get the 42C from Wilmslow Road which is a good 10 minute walk for me or get the 379 to Stanley Green and walk down through Stanley Green. We are forgotten this side of Stockport - plus I’m not old enough to get my bus pass yet.”
Meanwhile, the possible loss of two circular services linking Stockport to Edgeley and Cheadle Hulme, is a big worry for Kirsty Simpson.
“I get the 328 or 313 to and from work if this goes ahead I'll have to walk to and from stockport morning and very late evening,” she says. “Not looking forward to that in the winter months.”
Also listed for ‘deregistration’ is the 358. This isone of the cross-boundary services affected, linking Hayfield and New Mills in Derbyshire with south east Stockport and the town centre.
Steven Grieve, who lives in New Mils but works as a support worker for Cheadle and Marple sixth form colleges, is leading the charge to save the bus. “If this bus does not exist, it’s going to affect a lot of people - pensioners, children, workers, people who cannot use a car or don’t choose to use one, students…” he tells the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
“I work in Marple and Cheadle Hulme and won’t be able to get there - along with hundreds and hundreds of other people - this is a community thing.”
Steven says the loss of the 358 service - which is part funded by Derbyshire County Council - would also hit young people who go to Aquinas and Stockport colleges. The 55-year-old believes it’s a case of ‘fighting for the community’ and has organised a meeting at New Mills Town Hall from 7.30pm on Wednesday (August 17).
“This route is not underused, this route is a very popular route, a lot of people use this route,” says Steven, also making the point that bus operators are reimbursed for pensioners who use passes to travel.
The proposed rescue package of retendering and potential subsidies was delegated to Eamonn Boylan - chief executive of TfGM and GMCA - to progress at a meeting of the Greater Manchester Transport Committee on Friday (August 12). The arrangements with bus companies will also need the input of committee chair Coun Andrew Western and his vice chairs.
Bosses will know what level of interest there is from bus companies - and what price they will want for running the various services - by the end of the month.
A spokesperson for Stagecoach, which runs services in Stockport, said : “This current review of the bus network is a requirement of the government recovery funding for bus services across England and I would like to reassure our customers that the cancellation of service was just the first part of this wider bus network review that we have been working on in partnership with Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), other local authorities and other bus operators in the region.
“It was agreed with TfGM that services where the fares don’t cover the costs of operation in their present form and where investment is required should be cancelled initially with further discussions then being held to devise a new and sustainable network. We have since been working closely with TfGM on the development of a new bus network that reflects the new travel patterns we have seen coming out of the pandemic, and current levels of passenger demand.
"It will also be designed to ensure there is a sustainable bus network for the long-term against a backdrop of rising costs and labour challenges across the UK economy.”
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