Transport for Greater Manchester
Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) is the public body responsible for co-ordinating transport services throughout Greater Manchester in North West England. TfGM is responsible for investments in improving transport services and facilities. It is an executive arm of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), the city region's administrative authority. The strategies and policies of Transport for Greater Manchester are set by the GMCA and its Greater Manchester Transport Committee (GMTC). The committee is made up of 33 councillors appointed from the ten Greater Manchester districts (Bolton, Bury, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford  and Wigan). History. The organisation traces its origins to the Transport Act 1968, when the SELNEC (South East Lancashire/North East Cheshire) Passenger Transport Executive was established to co-ordinate public transport in and around Manchester. Between 1974 and 2011, it was known as the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive (GMPTE), until a reform of local government in Greater Manchester granted it more powers and prompted a corporate rebranding. Services. Manchester Metrolink. The Manchester Metrolink light rail system launched in 1992. Entirely subsidised by TfGM without a government grant and operated by KeolisAmey. It carries over 43.7 million passengers a  year. With 99 stations it is the second largest local transport network in the United Kingdom after the London Underground. Further expansion to Stockport is envisaged. Rail services. Rail services are operated by Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, Northern, TransPennine Express and Transport for Wales. TfGM subsidise fares on certain local services and fund station refurbishments on an ad hoc basis. Bee Network. The Bee Network is a proposed integrated transport network for Greater Manchester, composed of bus, tram, cycling, and walking routes. TfGM's vision is for the network to be operational by 2024, with commuter rail  services joining the network by 2030. Originally devised in 2018 as a network of active travel routes, the vision for the Bee Network was expanded following the Greater Manchester Combined Authority's decision to use the powers given to it under the Bus Services Act 2017 to introduce a bus franchising scheme for the city region. Transport for Greater Manchester Committee (TfGMC). TfGM inherited the responsibilities of the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive established in 1974. On 1 April 2011, the GMPTE became Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), a new regional transport body for Greater Manchester that forms part of  the new Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA). As a result, GMITA was abolished, replaced by the Transport for Greater Manchester Committee (TfGMC) which ultimately reports to the Combined Authority. TfGMC and its subcommittees are made up of a nominated pool of 33 councillors from the ten metropolitan boroughs of Greater Manchester who manage TfGM and create transport policy in Greater Manchester. Although it differs in certain structural forms, on the day of its inauguration TfGM became the second most powerful and influential transport organisation in England after Transport for London because it unites previously splintered governance over transport policy in  the boroughs under one body. It elects its own Chair and Vice-Chair and assumes the functions previously performed by GMITA as well as the newly devolved transport powers and responsibilities from government and the ten metropolitan councils which make up the area. The 33 councillors have voting rights on most transport issues despite not being members of the GMCA: major decisions still require approval by the GMCA, but the functions that are referred (but not delegated) to the TfGMC include making recommendations in relation to: Corporate identity. TfGM uses a corporate identity designed in-house. The black and white  M logo is adapted from the GMPTE logo and is used on bus stops across Greater Manchester.