#AYearOfBuses 92: Hazel Grove – Manchester

Today’s route on #AYearOfBuses runs only in only direction, only on a weekday morning – because it was too confusing for customers to catch on the way home!

Stagecoach Manchester’s X92 is a non-stop, express version of its popular 192 – one of the busiest bus corridors in Europe (and a route which we’ll come back to in around 100 days’ time).

Until recently, the X92 ran several times a day in both directions – in the morning, taking commuters fast from Hazel Grove, to Stockport and Manchester, and in the evening, the opposite way around. Journey times were around half that of the regular 192.

However, an unfortunate change of departure stands in Manchester city centre plonked the X92 buses in with regular, slower 192s in the evening – and customers were not happy. The Manchester Evening News reported that – once they realised they’d boarded the ‘non-stop’ bus – people opened the doors themselves, argued, hammered on the glass, and even threatened drivers with death.

In response, Stagecoach binned the evening ‘fast’ buses – leaving just three early morning departures into the city on what should have been a direct competitor to the train.

Image credit: Manchester Evening News