Passengers who travel on a vital bus route which was close to being axed due to low usage have aired their frustrations over it being overcrowded. The Red Express X41 service, which runs from Accrington to Manchester city centre and includes stops in Ramsbottom and Prestwich, is operated by Transdev-owned bus firm The Blackburn Bus Company. The service was saved just days before it was due to be cut from the timetables in January 2020 but the revived popularity of the service has left some commuters frustrated due to overcrowding and lack of double deckers.
Sophia Bond, 23, from Ramsbottom, started a new job in Manchester a month ago and commutes five days a week on the service which she says is consistently 10 to 15 minutes late. She said: “Everybody usually manages to get on the bus but it is very uncomfortable and packed with people often forced to stand. “There are normally double deckers on Tuesdays and Thursday mornings because they are the busiest days for commuting.
But in the evening they are never any double deckers. “It would be really good if there were two services around 5pm to 5.30pm back from Manchester time to meet the demand.
” Other Red Express commuters have also taken to social media to air their complaints with the service, with some saying they have asked the operator for more double deckers but said they were told they were already being used on other services. The service, which also stops at Haslingden and Edenfield, travels to the city centre.