The new Greater Manchester Guided Busway is due to be launched this week, bringing more innovative travel technology into the north of England.
The 14 mile route will connect Leigh/Atherton in Wigan Borough with Salford and Manchester, reducing congested traffic travel times from 1hr 30 minutes to 50 minutes. 4.5 miles of the journey are on custom-built busway – a concrete channel separated from traffic.
A fleet of twenty new First Greater Manchester hybrid buses, dubbed ‘Vantage’, have been purpose-built for the busway. These high-specification, low-emission buses with guide wheels are equipped with leather seating, tables upstairs, free Icomera Passenger Wi-Fi, USB charging points, visual stop announcements and climate control.
Icomera Wi-Fi is frequently a feature of pioneering innovative public transport infrastructure and vehicles. The Greater Manchester Guided Busway follows the opening of the popular Cambridgeshire Guided Busway – the world’s longest guided busway, also equipped with Icomera Wi-Fi.
The launch of the guided busway is part of the wider rollout of Transport for Greater Manchester’s public transport improvements, which included the provision of Icomera Wi-Fi on 96 Metrolink trams last year, and 20 Metroshuttle buses.
