Elderly and disabled to benefit from bus service

A bus service which takes pensioners and the disabled to supermarkets in Rochdale will be launched soon.

The scheme, which has proved popular in Oldham since it was launched there in 2005, will give elderly and disabled residents access to affordable fresh food shopping and reduce taxi journeys according to the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Authority.

Meanwhile, Rochdale's bus services are also set to benefit when First Manchester buses bring in a new £33million fleet of 200 new double decker buses to be used across Greater Manchester.

The company will start running the first of the high-tech Volvo buses next month and introduce the rest over the next 18 months.

By the end of the month the 24 bus, which runs between Manchester and Rochdale via Royton and Chadderton, will benefit from extra drivers and buses to improve reliability.

The reliability drive coincides with a new marketing campaign advertising the £14 price of a week’s bus travel compared with £40 a week for a car.

Network director Simon Bennett said: “We have been working on this for some time.

“Some companies lease their fleets but we actually buy our buses. By the time this phase is over, we will have spent £70 million on new buses since 2005.”