Why can Greater Manchester have more Park and Ride sites?
Park and Ride is very popular, and Greater Manchester already has several thousand park and ride spaces at Metrolink and rail stations. These can be good for the environment. For instance in Chester Park and Ride buses keep cars out of the historic centre. In Greater Manchester however the story is a bit different and Park and Ride sites can actually increase car mileage. Surveys suggest many people would otherwise walk, cycle or get the bus to the station, and for every five cars spaces we build only one is occupied by a new public transport user. Where there is proven demand and it is right for the environment, we provide more spaces. The nature of Greater Manchester means that these are likely to be rail or Metrolink based, rather than using buses.
