CHANGES will be made to three Bolton bus services — three months after the transport network was hit by chaos.

In early April, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) was forced to take drastic action after Bolton-based Maytree Travel closed down.

TfGM had to grant emergency tenders to other bus companies, allowing those firms to run routes for three months.

Those contracts expired yesterday and, with no major issues in that time, TfGM has decided to renew the contracts.

The routes are all subsidised, which means they do not make a profit, so TfGM pays the bus providers as the routes are deemed so important and there is no alternative.

However, three routes have been changed because other providers have recently introduced profit-making services on the same routes.

It means, from yesterday — the 553 from Bolton to Hindley will no longer go to or from Aspull.

— the 559 from Bolton to Boothstown will no longer go to Leigh.

— the 714 from Bolton to Aspull via Westhoughton, Horwich and Blackrod will no longer run at all.

The changes were approved at the latest meeting of TfGM’s sub-committee meeting.

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