"Astley Street, this definitely hasn't let me down" or run around and desert you? 😂 Yes, the guided busway reuses the former railway trackbed from Leigh to Ellenbrook. It was once the Tyldesley Loopline of the London and North Western Railway's Manchester and Wigan Railway line, but the Tyldesley Loopline closed in 1969 because of the Beeching cuts. Adelaide has a famous guided busway, the O-Bahn! The greater Adelaide area experienced significant growth during and after WWII, and thus so did the number of vehicles registered. By the mid-1970s, transportation had become a problem in the northeastern suburbs. This led to a study that concluded that a light-rail would be the best option. However, there was opposition because people thought it would interfere with the well-designed layout of the city proper, and that light-rail vehicles would be too noisy. In search of a replacement for the light rail project, they examined the O-Bahn system in Essen in what was then West Germany by Daimler-Benz, which opened in 1980. The system was seen as far superior to previous proposals. It used less land, made less noise, was faster and cost less. In addition, its unique feature of a non-transfer service direct from suburban streets to the city center made it more attractive. So Adelaide's O-Bahn opened in 1986. Adelaide's track is 12 km/7.5 mi long and includes three interchanges at Klemzig, Paradise and Tea Tree Plaza. Interchanges allow buses to enter and exit the busway and to continue on suburban routes, avoiding the need for passengers to transfer to another bus to continue their journey. Not to mention, the O-Bahn has sump buster devices to prevent cars. Not a guided busway, but Nancy and Caen in France once had a concept which used Bombardier Guided Light Transit. They're buses that could not only operate independently as a bus but were also capable of turning into trams. So basically a trolleybus (though they used a diesel engine to reach the depot because the depots in Caen and Nancy were out of the way from the route) that turned into a tram since they still used overhead wires as a bus. But instead of riding on rails, they run on rubber tires, although guided by a central guidance rail. Because of the fact they didn't really need a guidance rail as it could steer and be operated independently, calling them a tram is quite debatable (especially compared to the Translohr; a rubber-tyred tramway that must permanently follow guide rails that they cannot divert from). Caen got rid of theirs in 2017 in favor of a legit tramway, while Nancy ended theirs in March 2023 in favor of bringing back their trolleybuses. And then there's the Japanese Dual-Mode Vehicle on the Asatō Line in Shikoku. A declining rural population doesn't justify running a normal train in Shikoku, so to attract tourism and help the rural senior population, the Asa Coast Railway Company opted for a bus that doubles as a train (they got a local school to do a drumming thing to play when it switches modes). As the rail portion is elevated, it can help with rescue during a tsunami.
I had the pleasure of riding the Leigh Busway a couple of years ago - a thing you notice pretty quickly is the speed the buses can get up to, akin to a tramway. The reason for the Busway's existence is down to Leigh famously being the largest community in the UK without a railway service; this system was cheaper and easier than a full tramway, but had the advantages of the buses being able to just join the normal roads at either end, plus of being upgradable to tram should the case for doing so be accepted, while the V1s looked busier because that route does the full Busway from Leigh, while the V2 starts at Atherton and joins the Busway at Tyldesley Interchange (hence the bus stops behind you). If you'd stayed on, you'd have had the added fun of using the A580 East Lancashire Road - a dual-carriageway WITH BUS LANES!
Any idea why it doesn't get anywhere near central Manchester? If I remember right there is still a 45 minute journey on regular roads between the bus way and Manchester City centre?
The former railway alignment the Busway is built on doesn't go near the City Centre (it turns southeast towards Monton Green as the Roe Green Loopline cycle/footpath) and, to be fair to TfGM, a lot of the remaining 13km is on Bus Lanes, so they've done the best they reasonably can.
Here are some other interesting examples of BRT: Pittsburgh has different bus highways! The Martin Luther King Jr. East Busway serves Pittsburgh's eastern neighborhoods and suburbs. Named in honor of Martin Luther King Jr because it serves predominantly African-American neighborhoods. Originally a Pennsylvania Railroad line, planning for the East Busway began shortly after the Port Authority of Allegheny County purchased the Pittsburgh Railways Company in 1964. The original segment of the busway opened in February 1983, running between Downtown Pittsburgh and Edgewood, a length of 6.8 miles, and expanded to 9.1 miles in 2002! The West Busway serves western neighborhoods and suburbs, running for 5.1 miles (8.2 km) from the southern shore of the Ohio River near downtown to Carnegie, following the former Panhandle Route (called such because it served WV's northern panhandle) railroad ROW. The South Busway runs for 4.3 miles (6.9 km) from the Mt. Washington Transit Tunnel across the Monongahela River from Downtown Pittsburgh to the Overbrook neighborhood. The Mt. Washington Transit Tunnel is pretty cool in that it's shared by both buses and light-rail, just like how the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel used to operate! The first use of a protected busway was the East Side Trolley Tunnel in Providence, Rhode Island. It is 2,160 feet long and was originally built for trolleys in 1914, but the tunnel was converted to bus use in 1948! The tunnel runs under College Hill on Providence's East Side, with its east portal at Thayer Street, the busy commercial district near Brown University, leading to its west portal at North Main Street near the Rhode Island School of Design. The tunnel traverses a 100-foot drop in elevation from its east portal to its west portal, while providing a gentler 4% to 5% grade compared to the steeper 10% grade of the city streets above it, and of course allowing public-transit vehicles to bypass traffic and stoplights. The tunnel allows faster transit access from College Hill to Downtown Providence and the RIPTA transit hub at Kennedy Plaza. Police and fire department vehicles also use the tunnel. You could argue this was the first BRT in the world, though many believe the first BRT system in the world to be the Runcorn Busway in the UK which opened in 1971. 22 km was operational by 1980. Arthur Ling, Runcorn Development Corporation's Master Planner, said that he had invented the concept while sketching on the back of an envelope. The town was designed around the transport system, with most residents no more than five minutes walking distance, or 500 yards (or around 460 m), from the Busway. The busway has a designed speed of 40 mph. The central station is at Runcorn Shopping City where buses arrive on dedicated raised busways to two enclosed stations. Curitiba in the Brazilian state of Paraná opened the world's second BRT system in 1974, the Rede Integrada de Transporte, which was also a component of one of the most successful examples of TOD! In 2024, the system has 6 lines with a length of 81.4 km total! Their fleet uses bi-articulated buses split into three sections and operates only with soy-based biofuel, which reduces pollutant emissions by 50%. In the 1980s, they introduced elevated glass tube stations, which allow for fare prepayment, all door loading, and level boarding! Inside some tube stations there are Tubotecas, or small libraries, introduced in 2013. Citizens can borrow books with no need to register and return them to any other Tuboteca, any time. In addition, 20% of the stations also have passing lanes to allow for express services. Based on 1991 traveler survey results, it was estimated that the introduction of the BRT had caused a reduction of about 27 million auto trips per year, annually saving about 27 million liters of fuel. In particular, 28 percent of BRT riders previously traveled by car. Compared to eight other Brazilian cities of its size, Curitiba uses about 30 percent less fuel per capita, resulting in one of the country's lowest rates of ambient air pollution
We used to have a short guided busway in Edinburgh, some years ago, that has since been converted to tramway. It's quite a simple concept, with the guidewheels being on the bus.
Good to see you being in my neck of the world, Leigh. The busway has been very popular since its inception, a cheaper way to get in Manchester than the train
Nice vid! I'm surprised more of these aren't being built at a rapid pace. Imagine how many old railways could be put back into use with guided busways. Plus there's the added benefit that buses can travel into the town centre.
The longest guided busway in the world is near me - the Cambridgeshire Guided Busway which connects Huntingdon, Cambridge and St Ives (though not St Neots where I live). You should go and have a ride on that
The cambridgeshire guided busway is two disjoint sections. The southern section runs from near Trumpington park and ride to near Cambridge station. There is a short section south of cambridge station that is labeled on google maps as "cambridshire guided busway" but isn't actually guided busway. Busses cross the centre of cambridge on normal roads. Before joining the north section of the busway at either orchard park or cambridge north station. Again there is a short section around cambridge north station that is labeled on google maps as "cambridshire guided busway" but isn't actually guided busway.
I been on a guided busway and probably the smallest guided busway in the world which is in Kesgrave Suffolk near Ipswich! It is fun on them but this one only last about a minute to ride the whole section of it with one stop.
That one shocked me when I first rode on it. Makes me wonder why they bothered to make it a busway in the first place. It was likely also the only busway to have ALX400's regularly running on it until they were replaced by Streetdecks.
There’s a shorter one in Crawley, heading Towards Three Bridges. It’s in two sections, the first only being about two or three bus lengths and the second longer, but still very short, maybe about 20 seconds. It runs in that direction only, there’s no guideway running into Grawley. I’m not sure if it’s still used, I’ve never actually seen a bus on it, though I have seen buses at Crawley bus station fitted with guide wheels. There’s also another very short section head ding out of Crawley towards Gatwick Airport, but again, I’ve never seen a bus on it. The only other one I’ve seen was in Bradford. It was along, I think, the Wakefield Road. When I used to travel by coach from Bradford back to London the coach would sometimes run alongside the guideway. Again, there was only one guideway, but it was broken into several sections, with some being used in one direction, and some in the other. Overall length was probably about 1 km. I keep meaning to look at Cambridge or Luton, but somehowI’ve never got round to it.
@@srfurley Crawley has several more guided bus lanes than the three you’ve described! The most notable ones are found if you head south out of the town centre - they’re still quite short individually, but the combined length is quite decent. Plus, near the stadium there is a retractable bollard that only allows buses to run through, with cars having to go the long way around. There are also quite a few more on the way to Gatwick, not just the one, but those are all quite short. And in the northern part of town there is even a guided busway cutting right through the middle of the roundabout which is kinda cool (strangely only southbound though). P.S. an interesting fact to add here is that Crawley has three _fastway_ routes: 10, 20 and 100. In theory the fastway branding is supposed to be reserved for the routes that use the guided busway, but in reality only the first two ever do - the 100, despite being by far the longest of the three and going all the way to Redhill, doesn’t encounter a single guided lane en route!
Drive past Newearth Road stop pretty much every time I go to work. I did ride the route when it first opened - seemed a bit bumpy and slow at the time but I think they have speed up a bit since then. Overcrowding has been a bit of an issue for the route - and at some point they added a service to the timetable that apparently never actually run. It was originally run by First Manchester. Its now run by Go North West I believe. I see even though they have updated the buses to the new yellow livery for Bee network - some of the vantage branding still remains.
I have used the V1 many times, and yes it's a very useful bus, but it has it's shortcomings! it's all on three miles from leigh then it uses the A580, at busy periods the nearer you get to Manchester you can be stuck in the busy traffic! and it can take a while to reach your destination! also it doesn't go into Manchester centre { Piccadilly } you have to get off and walk into the main shopping area, especially if your disabled, but you can jump on a tram!! coming back to Leigh at busy times the V1 is definately stuck in traffic until you reach the busway! bring on the tram!
Hey Nick, I don’t know if you noticed or not but the Bee Network logo (specifically the bee) has handlebars on its head to represent transport! How cool!
This is so weird, in a good way. Great way to repurpose old train lines or even provide public transport through countryside without too much devastation. I'm inspired to make a trip myself. Thanks Nick.
The first guided busway in the world to use double-deck buses was introduced in Birmingham in 1984 by West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive. It ran from the City to Short Heath near Erdington. A three-year trial on an existing bus route which was not renewed in 1987 when the new operator declined to fit out its new fleet! An example of the Metrobus vehicle used is preserved in its operational condition at the Aldridge Transport museum.
Fareham has a bus way.. it's a converted railway line but hasn't got concrete wedges for the bus to run in, it's just a two way wide road for buses only.
The Adelaide O-Bahn has small horizontal rubber (retractable) wheels near the ground that prevents the bus from "de-railing". Does the Manchester bus have anything similar?
Brilliant video Nick, to me guided busways are just buses pretending to be trams or trains lol. I never thought buses would have table seats, I'd be scraed if I found all the bus bells not working lol.
The Ol' Vantage Busway (now under Bee Network Branding)... I remember riding along the guided busway very early on, was a really nice ride out to Leigh and back. Compared to the X34 bus that it sorta replaced, it was like night and day. Much quicker, more relaxing with the newer Vantage buses they introduced (they even had table seats upstairs!!!) and a more scenic route than the X34. The X34 just kinda trundled along and took a lot longer to get from Manchester to Leigh. It was a great investment for what was quite an awkward place to get to before, Leigh was pretty isolated from Manchester public transport wise. Leigh has no railway station (if your not counting Atherton or Bryn) and most of the buses would come from say Wigan, Bolton, Ashton in Makerfield and Warrington. Having that transport link really benefited the entire area, Atherton too.
Great video, I think it would be insanely funny if you ever played TSW5. Maybe give the 801 a try, or the 350? Be thankful there’s no 150/1’s 😂 Nick Loves 150/1’s!
@@NickBadley The driver has a small indicator on the dashboard that illuminates whenever the bell is pressed. If it's that quiet, the driver probably relied on the stop request indicator.
I can recall a proposal many, many years back to turn the "Abbey Flyer" Watford Junction to St Albans Abbbey service into a bus way that was met with a great deal of hostility. Having seen this, I'm curious as to whether it would actually have been better than retaining it as heavy rail, as fond of it though I am (grew up literally next to it), the frequency on it is rubbish and it's historically not been the most reliable service in the world. Bus way would seem to offer much greater frequency options, and the long running saga of the passing loop would be far easier to address.
this video gave me a migraine i love the trains busses are stressful , jeezo the conclusion was great but i have lways wanted to explore the bus only motorwya track x well done btw great video as per, cant wait to see you back in glasgow tea is on me x
There are other busways in the UK. Cambridge has one and so does Luton-Dunstable. And from Fareham to Gosport in Hampshire that goes along with former railway line.
I am sure Leeds and Bradford had a form of guided busway as they were cheaper than trams. Granted they ran in the middle of duel carriageways. Not sure if they are still used.
Looks ok. Bristol’s guideway section is much shorter, most of the routes rely on bus-only lanes - which is largely wishful thinking at great expense. Are those buses any quieter or more comfortable when on the guideway and presumably not having to avoid potholes?
I did not know you had these up north - you need to come down to Gossport and have a go on their South East Hampshire Bus Rapid Transit which is an unguided busway between Gosport and Fareham and while you are in this part of the world you could have a ride upon the longest hovercraft service in the world
Did you know theres a couple of other places with the bus guided ways such as Luton and Cambridge by any chance could you maybe give them a visit some time in the future
They built some these in Bristol. Cost more than tram lines would, and the busses went slower than a normal driver. Seems very dependent on the implementation but I don't think they're a great solution in general. Just build trams, or keep it cheap.
Pity you didn't get a chance to go on the "twisto" which was a trolleybus that connected to a single tram line through the centre of Caen, Calvados, Normandie. It was replaced by a proper tram when fifth Republic of France released money. Have you done the Metrobus in Bristol? It's not guided but has it's own roads in parts and tickets purchased from a machine like a metro or a train.
i used the Cambridge Busway to visit Histon FC. I took my fold up bike with me. unbeknown to me you can’t bring any form of cycle with you unless it’s inside a carry bag!. Across the road is a cycle store. Bag price £35!!!. No thanks. On the opposite side of the stop was a pub with a stray Black Bin Liner in the car park. Perfect but a bit suspect. The return journey was fun as any size prams were acceptable but not uncovered fold up bikes. PS the service is excellent until you hit Cambridge Town Centre then total grid lock. We got held up for 20 minutes
Edinburgh used to have a guided busway before it became the tram line in 2014. I don't think I ever went on it when it was a guided busway (on the 22 bus) though. I think Leeds also had sections of former guided busway up Scott Hall Road but I'm not sure when/how intensively that was used.
I’ve ridden this so many times that I have lost count but the only reason I use it shaves of 15-20 minutes of journey time going into Manchester centre.
I really don’t understand the point of these. There used to be a railway between Luton and Dunstable, it all got ripped up to put in a busway. What’s the point, surely it would be cheaper to tarmac it and make it a bus only road.
"Astley Street, this definitely hasn't let me down" or run around and desert you? 😂 Yes, the guided busway reuses the former railway trackbed from Leigh to Ellenbrook. It was once the Tyldesley Loopline of the London and North Western Railway's Manchester and Wigan Railway line, but the Tyldesley Loopline closed in 1969 because of the Beeching cuts. Adelaide has a famous guided busway, the O-Bahn! The greater Adelaide area experienced significant growth during and after WWII, and thus so did the number of vehicles registered. By the mid-1970s, transportation had become a problem in the northeastern suburbs. This led to a study that concluded that a light-rail would be the best option. However, there was opposition because people thought it would interfere with the well-designed layout of the city proper, and that light-rail vehicles would be too noisy. In search of a replacement for the light rail project, they examined the O-Bahn system in Essen in what was then West Germany by Daimler-Benz, which opened in 1980. The system was seen as far superior to previous proposals. It used less land, made less noise, was faster and cost less. In addition, its unique feature of a non-transfer service direct from suburban streets to the city center made it more attractive. So Adelaide's O-Bahn opened in 1986. Adelaide's track is 12 km/7.5 mi long and includes three interchanges at Klemzig, Paradise and Tea Tree Plaza. Interchanges allow buses to enter and exit the busway and to continue on suburban routes, avoiding the need for passengers to transfer to another bus to continue their journey. Not to mention, the O-Bahn has sump buster devices to prevent cars.
Not a guided busway, but Nancy and Caen in France once had a concept which used Bombardier Guided Light Transit. They're buses that could not only operate independently as a bus but were also capable of turning into trams. So basically a trolleybus (though they used a diesel engine to reach the depot because the depots in Caen and Nancy were out of the way from the route) that turned into a tram since they still used overhead wires as a bus. But instead of riding on rails, they run on rubber tires, although guided by a central guidance rail. Because of the fact they didn't really need a guidance rail as it could steer and be operated independently, calling them a tram is quite debatable (especially compared to the Translohr; a rubber-tyred tramway that must permanently follow guide rails that they cannot divert from). Caen got rid of theirs in 2017 in favor of a legit tramway, while Nancy ended theirs in March 2023 in favor of bringing back their trolleybuses. And then there's the Japanese Dual-Mode Vehicle on the Asatō Line in Shikoku. A declining rural population doesn't justify running a normal train in Shikoku, so to attract tourism and help the rural senior population, the Asa Coast Railway Company opted for a bus that doubles as a train (they got a local school to do a drumming thing to play when it switches modes). As the rail portion is elevated, it can help with rescue during a tsunami.
I had the pleasure of riding the Leigh Busway a couple of years ago - a thing you notice pretty quickly is the speed the buses can get up to, akin to a tramway.
The reason for the Busway's existence is down to Leigh famously being the largest community in the UK without a railway service; this system was cheaper and easier than a full tramway, but had the advantages of the buses being able to just join the normal roads at either end, plus of being upgradable to tram should the case for doing so be accepted, while the V1s looked busier because that route does the full Busway from Leigh, while the V2 starts at Atherton and joins the Busway at Tyldesley Interchange (hence the bus stops behind you).
If you'd stayed on, you'd have had the added fun of using the A580 East Lancashire Road - a dual-carriageway WITH BUS LANES!
Any idea why it doesn't get anywhere near central Manchester?
If I remember right there is still a 45 minute journey on regular roads between the bus way and Manchester City centre?
The former railway alignment the Busway is built on doesn't go near the City Centre (it turns southeast towards Monton Green as the Roe Green Loopline cycle/footpath) and, to be fair to TfGM, a lot of the remaining 13km is on Bus Lanes, so they've done the best they reasonably can.
Here are some other interesting examples of BRT: Pittsburgh has different bus highways! The Martin Luther King Jr. East Busway serves Pittsburgh's eastern neighborhoods and suburbs. Named in honor of Martin Luther King Jr because it serves predominantly African-American neighborhoods. Originally a Pennsylvania Railroad line, planning for the East Busway began shortly after the Port Authority of Allegheny County purchased the Pittsburgh Railways Company in 1964. The original segment of the busway opened in February 1983, running between Downtown Pittsburgh and Edgewood, a length of 6.8 miles, and expanded to 9.1 miles in 2002! The West Busway serves western neighborhoods and suburbs, running for 5.1 miles (8.2 km) from the southern shore of the Ohio River near downtown to Carnegie, following the former Panhandle Route (called such because it served WV's northern panhandle) railroad ROW. The South Busway runs for 4.3 miles (6.9 km) from the Mt. Washington Transit Tunnel across the Monongahela River from Downtown Pittsburgh to the Overbrook neighborhood. The Mt. Washington Transit Tunnel is pretty cool in that it's shared by both buses and light-rail, just like how the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel used to operate!
The first use of a protected busway was the East Side Trolley Tunnel in Providence, Rhode Island. It is 2,160 feet long and was originally built for trolleys in 1914, but the tunnel was converted to bus use in 1948! The tunnel runs under College Hill on Providence's East Side, with its east portal at Thayer Street, the busy commercial district near Brown University, leading to its west portal at North Main Street near the Rhode Island School of Design. The tunnel traverses a 100-foot drop in elevation from its east portal to its west portal, while providing a gentler 4% to 5% grade compared to the steeper 10% grade of the city streets above it, and of course allowing public-transit vehicles to bypass traffic and stoplights. The tunnel allows faster transit access from College Hill to Downtown Providence and the RIPTA transit hub at Kennedy Plaza. Police and fire department vehicles also use the tunnel. You could argue this was the first BRT in the world, though many believe the first BRT system in the world to be the Runcorn Busway in the UK which opened in 1971. 22 km was operational by 1980. Arthur Ling, Runcorn Development Corporation's Master Planner, said that he had invented the concept while sketching on the back of an envelope. The town was designed around the transport system, with most residents no more than five minutes walking distance, or 500 yards (or around 460 m), from the Busway. The busway has a designed speed of 40 mph. The central station is at Runcorn Shopping City where buses arrive on dedicated raised busways to two enclosed stations.
Curitiba in the Brazilian state of Paraná opened the world's second BRT system in 1974, the Rede Integrada de Transporte, which was also a component of one of the most successful examples of TOD! In 2024, the system has 6 lines with a length of 81.4 km total! Their fleet uses bi-articulated buses split into three sections and operates only with soy-based biofuel, which reduces pollutant emissions by 50%. In the 1980s, they introduced elevated glass tube stations, which allow for fare prepayment, all door loading, and level boarding! Inside some tube stations there are Tubotecas, or small libraries, introduced in 2013. Citizens can borrow books with no need to register and return them to any other Tuboteca, any time. In addition, 20% of the stations also have passing lanes to allow for express services. Based on 1991 traveler survey results, it was estimated that the introduction of the BRT had caused a reduction of about 27 million auto trips per year, annually saving about 27 million liters of fuel. In particular, 28 percent of BRT riders previously traveled by car. Compared to eight other Brazilian cities of its size, Curitiba uses about 30 percent less fuel per capita, resulting in one of the country's lowest rates of ambient air pollution
We used to have a short guided busway in Edinburgh, some years ago, that has since been converted to tramway. It's quite a simple concept, with the guidewheels being on the bus.
Good to see you being in my neck of the world, Leigh.
The busway has been very popular since its inception, a cheaper way to get in Manchester than the train
Nice vid! I'm surprised more of these aren't being built at a rapid pace. Imagine how many old railways could be put back into use with guided busways. Plus there's the added benefit that buses can travel into the town centre.
The longest guided busway in the world is near me - the Cambridgeshire Guided Busway which connects Huntingdon, Cambridge and St Ives (though not St Neots where I live). You should go and have a ride on that
Mate I live in Cambridge so ik
Ah yes that one! That's definitely on the to-do list
The cambridgeshire guided busway is two disjoint sections. The southern section runs from near Trumpington park and ride to near Cambridge station. There is a short section south of cambridge station that is labeled on google maps as "cambridshire guided busway" but isn't actually guided busway.
Busses cross the centre of cambridge on normal roads. Before joining the north section of the busway at either orchard park or cambridge north station. Again there is a short section around cambridge north station that is labeled on google maps as "cambridshire guided busway" but isn't actually guided busway.
@ it is the same as most guided bus ways i. The uk
6:09 that had me laughing! We got Badley Rolled! Very interesting video and looked more bouncy than a Class 142 Pacer.
Nick-Rolled, badl(e)y (it was funny though to be fair)
Point to Point idea:
All the Mill Hills: Mill Hill, London; Mills Hill, Greater Manc.; and Mill Hill, Blackburn
What about Brigg to Drigg 🤔
Torremolinos is Mill Hill in Spain.....
I been on a guided busway and probably the smallest guided busway in the world which is in Kesgrave Suffolk near Ipswich! It is fun on them but this one only last about a minute to ride the whole section of it with one stop.
That one shocked me when I first rode on it. Makes me wonder why they bothered to make it a busway in the first place. It was likely also the only busway to have ALX400's regularly running on it until they were replaced by Streetdecks.
There’s a shorter one in Crawley, heading Towards Three Bridges. It’s in two sections, the first only being about two or three bus lengths and the second longer, but still very short, maybe about 20 seconds. It runs in that direction only, there’s no guideway running into Grawley. I’m not sure if it’s still used, I’ve never actually seen a bus on it, though I have seen buses at Crawley bus station fitted with guide wheels. There’s also another very short section head ding out of Crawley towards Gatwick Airport, but again, I’ve never seen a bus on it.
The only other one I’ve seen was in Bradford. It was along, I think, the Wakefield Road. When I used to travel by coach from Bradford back to London the coach would sometimes run alongside the guideway. Again, there was only one guideway, but it was broken into several sections, with some being used in one direction, and some in the other. Overall length was probably about 1 km.
I keep meaning to look at Cambridge or Luton, but somehowI’ve never got round to it.
@@nathanw9770 Agreed with that! Stupid I say.
@@srfurley
Crawley has several more guided bus lanes than the three you’ve described! The most notable ones are found if you head south out of the town centre - they’re still quite short individually, but the combined length is quite decent. Plus, near the stadium there is a retractable bollard that only allows buses to run through, with cars having to go the long way around.
There are also quite a few more on the way to Gatwick, not just the one, but those are all quite short.
And in the northern part of town there is even a guided busway cutting right through the middle of the roundabout which is kinda cool (strangely only southbound though).
P.S. an interesting fact to add here is that Crawley has three _fastway_ routes: 10, 20 and 100. In theory the fastway branding is supposed to be reserved for the routes that use the guided busway, but in reality only the first two ever do - the 100, despite being by far the longest of the three and going all the way to Redhill, doesn’t encounter a single guided lane en route!
I live in Manchester! Thanks for visiting my place!
Busses are an absolute Delight. They are a very nice and calm way to travel around Britain.
Great video Nick! It's always a treat to go along the Guideway, especially if you've bagged the front seat atop a double-decker. 🚌
Fun fact: There is also one of these in Adelaide called the o-bhan
Drive past Newearth Road stop pretty much every time I go to work. I did ride the route when it first opened - seemed a bit bumpy and slow at the time but I think they have speed up a bit since then. Overcrowding has been a bit of an issue for the route - and at some point they added a service to the timetable that apparently never actually run. It was originally run by First Manchester. Its now run by Go North West I believe. I see even though they have updated the buses to the new yellow livery for Bee network - some of the vantage branding still remains.
There’s been guided buses in Leeds certainly for 28 years while I’ve been there!
I have used the V1 many times, and yes it's a very useful bus, but it has it's shortcomings! it's all on three miles from leigh then it uses the A580, at busy periods the nearer you get to Manchester you can be stuck in the busy traffic! and it can take a while to reach your destination! also it doesn't go into Manchester centre { Piccadilly } you have to get off and walk into the main shopping area, especially if your disabled, but you can jump on a tram!! coming back to Leigh at busy times the V1 is definately stuck in traffic until you reach the busway! bring on the tram!
Still can't believe I met you at Hough Lane on that day, it was a pleasure chatting to you. Keep up the good work! 😊
Awesome. Rode on this very track myself back in September. Pretty good and reliable bus network as well.
Hey Nick,
I don’t know if you noticed or not but the Bee Network logo (specifically the bee) has handlebars on its head to represent transport! How cool!
This is so weird, in a good way.
Great way to repurpose old train lines or even provide public transport through countryside without too much devastation.
I'm inspired to make a trip myself.
Thanks Nick.
It's like the o bahn in Adelaide
Looks great and fun!! Planning on moving to Manchester so this was a helpful video!! Love all your videos! Thank you!!
The first guided busway in the world to use double-deck buses was introduced in Birmingham in 1984 by West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive. It ran from the City to Short Heath near Erdington. A three-year trial on an existing bus route which was not renewed in 1987 when the new operator declined to fit out its new fleet! An example of the Metrobus vehicle used is preserved in its operational condition at the Aldridge Transport museum.
Wow! This was a really interesting video Nick! I absolutely love your videos Nick 😊
3:41 MANCHESTEER METROLINK!!!!
Nick, Reading Buses routes 13 and 14 have Wright StreetDeck's with sofa's in. Also Reading Buses has very colourful routes.
Fareham has a bus way.. it's a converted railway line but hasn't got concrete wedges for the bus to run in, it's just a two way wide road for buses only.
Luton railway station to Dunstable is a guided busway.
Never thought I'd see Nick in my hometown
The Adelaide O-Bahn has small horizontal rubber (retractable) wheels near the ground that prevents the bus from "de-railing". Does the Manchester bus have anything similar?
Point to point: Romford, Greater London to Cromford, Derbyshire?
Intro is goated
My neck of the woods! No way! I take this to work in Manchester every morning.
Didn't even know this was a thing! Never heard of a guided busway until now.
Brilliant video Nick, to me guided busways are just buses pretending to be trams or trains lol. I never thought buses would have table seats, I'd be scraed if I found all the bus bells not working lol.
In some locations like here in Los Angeles the busways are being constructed as a cheaper alliance to rail. Take a look at our Orange Line
The Ol' Vantage Busway (now under Bee Network Branding)... I remember riding along the guided busway very early on, was a really nice ride out to Leigh and back. Compared to the X34 bus that it sorta replaced, it was like night and day. Much quicker, more relaxing with the newer Vantage buses they introduced (they even had table seats upstairs!!!) and a more scenic route than the X34.
The X34 just kinda trundled along and took a lot longer to get from Manchester to Leigh.
It was a great investment for what was quite an awkward place to get to before, Leigh was pretty isolated from Manchester public transport wise. Leigh has no railway station (if your not counting Atherton or Bryn) and most of the buses would come from say Wigan, Bolton, Ashton in Makerfield and Warrington. Having that transport link really benefited the entire area, Atherton too.
need to visit Adelaide. :)
Only UK trains on your channel ?
Great video, I think it would be insanely funny if you ever played TSW5.
Maybe give the 801 a try, or the 350?
Be thankful there’s no 150/1’s 😂
Nick Loves 150/1’s!
There is also one in Gosport that uses an old rail bed. I’m fairly sure there are a couple more too
7:33 They do actually work on the G3 B5LH but they make a bell sound that’s quiet so that’s why
Oh god does that mean the driver heard a lot of excessive dinging.. oops 😬
@ Let’s just hope that you didn’t get told off 😳
@@NickBadley The driver has a small indicator on the dashboard that illuminates whenever the bell is pressed. If it's that quiet, the driver probably relied on the stop request indicator.
Did it feel like a bus pretending to be a tram or a normal bus until you remembered what it was running on?
Do we just have the same subscriptions how do I keep finding you
@CallumBlyth thought you be on HITC7s video on Caley. Surprised to see you here lol. Let's call it Great minds
Hey Nick - The 1 between Winchester and Southampton have table seats! It's a nice little journey.
Happy Halloween guys and Nick love your videos
I can recall a proposal many, many years back to turn the "Abbey Flyer" Watford Junction to St Albans Abbbey service into a bus way that was met with a great deal of hostility. Having seen this, I'm curious as to whether it would actually have been better than retaining it as heavy rail, as fond of it though I am (grew up literally next to it), the frequency on it is rubbish and it's historically not been the most reliable service in the world. Bus way would seem to offer much greater frequency options, and the long running saga of the passing loop would be far easier to address.
Leigh is honestly the friendliest town I’ve ever been to. Loved it!
this video gave me a migraine i love the trains busses are stressful , jeezo the conclusion was great but i have lways wanted to explore the bus only motorwya track x well done btw great video as per, cant wait to see you back in glasgow tea is on me x
Tables on buses do exist! I think the Bluestar in Southampton does on their top decks of doubles
There are other busways in the UK. Cambridge has one and so does Luton-Dunstable. And from Fareham to Gosport in Hampshire that goes along with former railway line.
They’ve had em in Bradford for over 20 years.
Manchester road central reservation
What's the advantage to guided busways compared to classic bus lines?
Have to say these are a good use when replacing dead railway lines. As my local one in luton is quite popular
I am sure Leeds and Bradford had a form of guided busway as they were cheaper than trams. Granted they ran in the middle of duel carriageways. Not sure if they are still used.
They still run. I was on it the other day haha
Arriva training buses have table seats, and it's something I'd love to see on express (X1, X2, etc) services
Great Video nick i am hoping to do a series but don’t know what to call it will have to least used stations but making them into a journey
Looks ok. Bristol’s guideway section is much shorter, most of the routes rely on bus-only lanes - which is largely wishful thinking at great expense. Are those buses any quieter or more comfortable when on the guideway and presumably not having to avoid potholes?
The X-Lines in Newcastle do some table seats depending on the bus
come to hull, the buses to york have them table seats on, it is nice tbh to see them
I think you've stumbled across a way to make HS2 cheaper....
400kph guided busway here we come!
That’s a new reason to go to Manchester, I think
Happy Halloween nick badley
Time to try the previous two versions in Luton and Cambridge which are larger and older
I did not know you had these up north - you need to come down to Gossport and have a go on their South East Hampshire Bus Rapid Transit which is an unguided busway between Gosport and Fareham and while you are in this part of the world you could have a ride upon the longest hovercraft service in the world
Did you know theres a couple of other places with the bus guided ways such as Luton and Cambridge by any chance could you maybe give them a visit some time in the future
What's the idea of the guided bus way? The buses aren't different in anyway are they?
Get yourself to Cambridgeshire and have a go on the one there.
The very first guided bus wy was in Birmingham in the 1970's run by West Midlands Travel in Slade Road Erdington on the number 65 bus toute
4:32 Not in Plaistow it isn’t…
My town’s got one 💪
You should ride the Cambridge guided busway it’s the longest guided busway in the world and my local one definitely worth a visit
Thanks for the guided guided busway tour.
They built some these in Bristol. Cost more than tram lines would, and the busses went slower than a normal driver. Seems very dependent on the implementation but I don't think they're a great solution in general. Just build trams, or keep it cheap.
Agreed about them not being a silver bullet, they need to be addressed on a case-by-case basis.
However, Leigh works (as does Cambridgshire).
There's 3 in West yorkshire that I know off 2 in leeds and 1 in Bradford
Do a Point to Point from Brampton in Suffolk to Brampton in Northumberland
Nick I hope you do visit the Luton to Dunstable bus way?
Pity you didn't get a chance to go on the "twisto" which was a trolleybus that connected to a single tram line through the centre of Caen, Calvados, Normandie. It was replaced by a proper tram when fifth Republic of France released money.
Have you done the Metrobus in Bristol? It's not guided but has it's own roads in parts and tickets purchased from a machine like a metro or a train.
i used the Cambridge Busway to visit Histon FC. I took my fold up bike with me. unbeknown to me you can’t bring any form of cycle with you unless it’s inside a carry bag!. Across the road is a cycle store. Bag price £35!!!. No thanks. On the opposite side of the stop was a pub with a stray Black Bin Liner in the car park. Perfect but a bit suspect. The return journey was fun as any size prams were acceptable but not uncovered fold up bikes. PS the service is excellent until you hit Cambridge Town Centre then total grid lock. We got held up for 20 minutes
That is right near where I live i was so close from doing a yt video on it when I was young
This is all so local to me use it all the time
You wonder why it a double decker on that route it due to how busy it is on that it can get packed
There is one in Adelaide
Edinburgh used to have a guided busway before it became the tram line in 2014. I don't think I ever went on it when it was a guided busway (on the 22 bus) though. I think Leeds also had sections of former guided busway up Scott Hall Road but I'm not sure when/how intensively that was used.
Nice car
What would happen if the guided busway got clogged up with snow and ice?
Oh crap Leigh has one of those that's down the road (relatively)
@@Class43Goat um, this *is* the one in Leigh
Nick go to the longest one in the uk in Cambridge
We have one of these in Cambridge, it's awful!
I’ve ridden this so many times that I have lost count but the only reason I use it shaves of 15-20 minutes of journey time going into Manchester centre.
Nick , you should do a pointless journey on a garden Bus way
Do you still flag them down?
I don't believe that's needed on here! specifically the guided section.
Wow I'm first your my favourite ytber ❤❤
Never heard of this before. Does it just exist because they wanted to reuse the old railway?
hi nick:)
I rode the Busway for the first time in december 2023
sdfgds
Needs a Cheese shop maybe or a Tea Services Vending machine oh Btw
Need Hiking boots.. And a Hat..
Also Bus needs Rocket boosters
I really don’t understand the point of these. There used to be a railway between Luton and Dunstable, it all got ripped up to put in a busway. What’s the point, surely it would be cheaper to tarmac it and make it a bus only road.
You are a bit young to remember the one type hat run in Birmingham
Runcorn has some of the earliest british busway... Not guided though