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Mar 13, 2025

Via Partners with Transport for Greater Manchester to Revamp Door-to-Door Transport Services | Future Transport-News

This collaboration signifies a step toward Greater Manchester’s bold vision for a fully integrated Bee Network that connects people to new opportunities, essential services and each other. Ring & Ride

This collaboration signifies a step toward Greater Manchester’s bold vision for a fully integrated Bee Network that connects people to new opportunities, essential services and each other.

Ring & Ride provides accessible, low-cost transport to disabled people and older people with walking difficulties in Greater Manchester, while Local Link offers a flexible minibus service for local journeys in parts of the city-region where public transport services are limited.

The upgraded transport services launched on 26 February. As a result, more than 850 passengers per day – primarily older people, disabled people, or those not well-connected to other transport routes – will enjoy a more convenient and flexible travel experience than ever before.

Greater Manchester recently became the first area outside of London to fully franchise its bus network, allowing TfGM to directly manage routes, fares, service standards, and technology integration. The revamped Local Link and Ring & Ride offerings advance this vision, and support the ambition to create a greener, fairer, and more prosperous city region.

The Bee Network is committed to making public transport and active travel more inclusive and accessible for everyone in Greater Manchester, and both Ring & Ride and Local Link play a vital role in providing access to low-cost, accessible and flexible journeys by public transport. We have invested significantly in modernising our public transport system to improve accessibility, including fitting our new Bee Network buses with audiovisual announcements, hearing loops and wheelchair bays, and we’re working hard to deliver even more improvements for our passengers. We know that these door-to-services are a lifeline for so many people in areas that are often hard to reach by traditional public transport, so we are delighted to be partnering with Via to help bring Ring & Ride and Local Link in line with our wider Bee Network to deliver a truly bespoke, modern and flexible experience for our customers.

Via is delighted to partner with TfGM to upgrade these services with our tech, and in turn make travel easier for all residents in Greater Manchester. Across the UK, we’ve seen how technology-driven mobility can transform communities, and we’re proud to support Manchester’s vision for a more connected and accessible region.

TfGM’s partnership with Via adds to a growing list of transport innovations across the UK as authorities seek solutions to help achieve their local transport goals. Today, Via’s technology powers 35 demand-responsive transport and dial-a-ride schemes across the UK, including those with Transport for London, Transport for West Midlands, and Transport for Wales. Via also offers authorities customised public transport navigation apps through Citymapper, and intuitive transport networking planning tools through its Remix software suite.

This article is originally published by VIA.