'Curious' bus fans flock to be first to try new route

For many, the opening of a new bus route to an industrial park might not prove to be the most enthralling day out, but for one group of curious transport enthusiasts the chance to climb onboard was too much to resist.

The new 615 service between Wigan and Middlebrook Park in Bolton has restarted four years after the link was cut.

It is the first bus route added in Greater Manchester since parts of the network were returned to local control by mayor Andy Burnham in September last year.

And for bus fans like Maxson Goh, one of the first passengers to board, it was the chance to "see what it was all about and where it went".

The 27-year-old from Salford said he "just wanted to see what it was like" and to take the opportunity to explore.

The route serves Wigan, Scholes and Aspull, before crossing the M61 to the Middlebrook retail park in Bolton.

Mr Goh said it was "important these areas are connected as a bus service provides a vital ink to people without a car to be able to conveniently visit these places".

Wigan man Alan Benison said he was "curious really" and "wanted to see where it goes".

"I've only been to this retail park once, that was by car, so I wanted to see what was like going by bus," the 85-year-old told BBC Radio Manchester.

Meanwhile, a father out with his son, told how they enjoyed travelling around the bus services of north-west of England and did not want to miss an opportunity to enjoy the first newly-opened route on the Bee Network.

"What we tend to do is go around buses in the region collecting bus tickets, so we can diarise it and say what we have been on," the father said.

Nigel Featham, managing director of bus operator Go North West, said the 615 service was "experimental"

"It might or might not attract enough people, but we believe it will," he said.

Go North West runs franchised Bee Network bus services under contract to Transport for Greater Manchester.

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