new 24-hour pilot bus service for Rochdale is set to launch this Thursday (4th September), supporting the borough’s night-time economy.
Night buses will run on the 17 on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays connecting communities in Rochdale, Castleton and Middleton with Manchester city centre.
Currently, the last journey on the service 17 leaves Manchester at 23:42 and Rochdale at 00:34, before starting again at around 4am. The new service will mean that buses will run all night, with services at 34 minutes past the hour from Rochdale and 42 minutes past the hour from Manchester.
This will mean there is a service through the night in both directions between Shudehill along Rochdale Road and Manchester Road to Rochdale.
As a result, people enjoying nights out in the city centre and Rochdale, enjoying a show at Middleton Arena and people working at locations such as Rochdale Infirmary will be able to get themselves home safely.
Plans for the new route were announced by Mayor Andy Burnham on 9 July as part of the launch of the Greater Manchester Strategy (GMS), the city region’s vision for the next decade to grow the local economy and ensure everyone can live well.
The GMS pledges to continue to develop the Bee Network as a transport system for a global city region, so that by 2030, 90% of the population live within 400m – a five-minute walk or wheeling distance – of a bus or tram that comes at least every 30 minutes and night buses play a key role in this.
The trial will see service run on a three-day weekend service pattern (Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights), running hourly throughout the night. This builds on passenger demand experienced on Greater Manchester’s first two night routes: V1 and 36 services which connect Manchester with Leigh and Bolton via Salford.
The night-time economy is a major part of Greater Manchester’s economy, with 358,000 people working in jobs or businesses that are significantly active at night, accounting for around 33% of the Greater Mancunian workforce.
Councillor Neil Emmott, leader of Rochdale Borough Council, said: “We have long lobbied for better transport connections in this part of the borough, with long term aspirations to bring the Metrolink to Middleton and Heywood.
“For many people in our borough, buses are their main means of getting around, so we need services which work for them. Currently, if you want to enjoy an evening out or work outside daytime hours, you have very few options where public transport is concerned. This change is a step in the right direction and I really welcome it.”
