WHO does Bolton councillor Guy Harkin (wearing his other hat as GMPTA chief) think he is kidding?

Far from Bolton being "on line" to get Metro, what was actually said is that it will be considered -- in 2010.

Bolton and Wigan -- with a combined population of 570,000, far in excess of that of the present City of Manchester, let us not forget -- are so poorly served by PTE planning that last year they were effectively given a rebate of £2 million.

This is yet another example of the distortion of the term "Greater Manchester." Leigh will not get Metro because it is cheaper to build a "guided busway" (I am sure people will be delighted to walk an extra half mile or so to get on a bus), and the population density is not great enough to meet government criteria. One minute -- I thought we were supposed to be in a metropolitan county! In other words, when it counts, it is not considered part of the Manchester conurbation.

Wigan is a huge anomaly; 18 miles from Manchester, with a direct motorway link to Liverpool instead. Metro will never reach Wigan, while regional transport planning continues to be done on the basis of the 1974 counties.

Bolton, readers may be surprised to hear, benefits from what Greater Manchester transport planners see as the county's "strong SE-NW axis". In other words, it has enough trains already. Please suppress your laughter, but the only Bolton tram you are likely to see is the preserved one on the front at Blackpool.

The assumption GM planners make is, of course, that any system must be Manchester-centred. For example, a Leigh-Bolton-Bury tramline through Daubhill -- which would be a marvellous vehicle for regeneration in a number of deprived areas, as well as an economic boost for all three town centres -- would not even feature on their wish list.

Once again, Bolton needs "Greater Manchester" like a fish needs a bike. Strategic transport planning should be done on a truly regional basis: one that includes Warrington and Liverpool with us, as part of the same conurbation, and the hinterland to the north and south of the urban belt.

A V Bowyer

Fallowfield Way

Atherton