There was alot of homeless people sleeping (I do not have a picture as that would be rude to take a…read morepicture of them) my train got delayed for 2 hours I don't recommend this.

From the outside, Wigan Bus Station looks nice with a relatively new sign, from the entrance from…read moreThe Galleries area but on the inside, it is just your typical bus station and in a way resembles Bury station, with a few platforms split off in a few mini-stations. They is a lot of buses which go from here, including to Manchester, Southport, Bolton and The Trafford Center, but I can't help but feel most of the buses are unneeded and go too far, for example Manchester is only around half an hour on the train, but getting the bus here is 85 minutes and when Southport is also around 1/2 an hour on the train, but still the bus takes nearly 2 hours which is ridiculous, considering services available from Wigan Wallgate. I think it is misleading for people who may not know the area for buses to take so long, when the train takes only a fraction of this, and going on one of these journeys is in a way a punishment, and I'm sure it wouldn't be much cheaper (if anything) than getting the train. I feel to get the best of public transport, the station should work with Wallgate and North Western to encourage people to use the train for longer journeys, and then this station can become a local hub, with more buses going to local destinations which will help benefit Wigan and local towns, and give people a better deal. As a station this is merely average and is your typical bus station, with a newsagents etc, it isn't terrible as it is good to have in central Wigan but sadly I don't feel it deserves over 2 stars.

Warrington Bus Station has few positives - It's close to…read moreWarrington Central - It has toilets (Very few toilets, you have to pay for them) - There is a small newsagent and an Iceland - You can go up a lift and get straight in Golden Square Shopping Centre (Yet they regularly break down) It can get pretty airy and can get cold, especially in these winter months. due to the design of the bus station, it also is built so buses have to reverse out which I don't like as much. There was a lack of information around the bus station and I found it hand to find out which bus goes where the fact it was difficult to find any staff around the station other than a toilet cleaner made it even more difficult. Both times I used Warrington's Own Buses, who are the main bus operator who goes from here, my service was both late and the driver was extremely rude. They also never replied to my complaint - I guess it isn't the station's fault its-self but it does play a part. 2* - Other than location there isn't much to shout about for this bus station, as a visitor to Warrington I felt lost, issues with the buses and finding information about services which just wasn't made clear (and that's in comparison to 95% of bus stations I've been to), if you know where you're going or you're The Lucky One, to quote Uku Suviste's Eesti Laul 2021 entry, this place is you. The extra star is mainly for the location and access into the shopping centre (when working).

Good points. It is near central station. Light airy and…read moreclean. Bad Points. There is no pick up drop off point for cars to drop off passengers. The Kiosk point is only open. You have to pay for the toilets. The way the buses have to go around the little round about and back up is dangerous.

St. Helens Bus Station is very well laid out, as it is logical in fashion thus allowing passengers…read moreto easily understand the system in place. I certainly didn't experience any problems when I searched for the correct stand and did not need to ask for assistance. The station is well sheltered to keep you from wind and rain with plenty of seating available. Timetables are clearly positioned on each stand without being confusing. Also, there are tactile controlled and uncontrolled crossings with rotating cones to assist blind and partially sighted people. As a whole, the station feels safe (and well lit at night) with the inclusion of CCTV. Plus, the area is well staffed at all operating times. If you have any queries, there is the travel information centre adjacent to the station. The only thing is that I failed to spot any toilets around.

Staff are Thieves…read more My son lost his Samsung Galaxy Buds on the 20 bus on the 12th October. Unbeknown to us, the driver had handed them in there. After grilling my son for weeks about losing them on the 30th Oct, I had an idea to see if the last known location had come up on the Samsung Smart Things app, guess what? They did on the 28th October at 1:08pm at Bolton Interchange, 2 weeks after my son lost them and they were handed into Bolton interchange, they had been opened by a staff member who must of had a Samsung phone, Unbeknown to that person, Samsung can now track things as soon as the case is opened that person will be unaware that a live location has been sent to the owner through their phone. My son has seen the driver since finding out the location of the buds and he has confirmed he handed them into Bolton Interchange as there is no staff at the Trafford Centre. We have a screenshot and live data on the map that 2 weeks later they pinged the location home on the 28th Oct at 1:08pm, armed with all the info, today 5th November I went to Bolton interchange to the information desk, what an absolute idiot I was greeted with, kept telling me the protocol to claim stuff back etc (I already knew this) but as it was coming up to 28 days which they then destroy stuff (apparently), I asked to speak to a manager, but got greeted with a Supervisor in an Orange vest, big guy, shaved head with beard who listened to my story fair enough and went to check the lost property cupboard. He came back and said there was nothing in there (I kind of knew that, I had a feeling that they wouldn't be logged). They obviously kept them for 2 weeks, thought that there's been no claim so they opened them and connected them to thier phone, big mistake, they done a ET and phoned home. So then with all the proof I gave him, he stuttered and said that they send stuff to the depot at Western Street or summat or the driver may of took them there, I said, why did the buds phone home then 2 weeks later at the location where the 20 bus driver said he handed them in?? He started stuttering and he abruptly walked away saying get the police involved then. The thing is, I wasn't accusing him at all but he said a comment that was very strange, so when I kind of said I THINK (didn't accuse) a staff member may of took them, he went defensive and said "I have a phone, buds, watches and stuff, why would we rob", interesting he started with I have almost like I was accusing him OR he knew something about my sons buds OR he knows what goes on with lost property. Needless to say, I went to the depot, spoke to a lovely old lady at lost property, they weren't there surprise suprise, but she did say some interesting things, one being that they have too much stuff and they are hoping for bigger room, some stuff have been there months and then she said, after 28 days, the staff get first pickings on what they want from lost property, well, that sealed it for me, I knew his buds were gone. They go to charity after 28 days or get disposed off, absolute bull. There is no point in ringing police as the cunning staff thief knew if they didn't log it, then nothing will go back on them. Even with driver saying he handed them in, there is no proof he done that. So, from what I gathered today, they don't log everything lost, they struggling at the depot (Western Street) with the amount of lost property and the work they have to do (the woman deserved the fag she had while we talked to her) and staff get pickings of any stuff not claimed when they all should be sent to a charity or disposed off. I 100% know now one of the staff members have my sons samsung buds or they would of been there when the Supervisor went up to check the cupboard. So, to the thieving scum staff member at Bolton Interchange at 1:08pm on the 28th November and with a Samsung phone, your day will come you dirty scum. Enjoy my son's wax ladened buds, ew, proper trampish using someone else's buds. Maybe ask for a payrise you underpayed piece of trash if you can't afford nice things in life.

Bolton Interchange is actually pretty impressive, it connects the bus and railway services which…read moreserves the town centre with a crossing bridge, it also has a modern, new bus interchange with a good amount of services, mainly served by Diamond North West. The bus station is the newest part, it has a Greggs and newsagents before you can take the stairs/lift/ramp to go up to the train station or down to the buses, although you can enter the bus station through the street, this is a nice shortcut by cutting through the bus station, especially if you're looking to avoid the rain or crossing roads. Ample seating while you wait for services as well as screens to show next times of buses/trains. There was only one lift which could make it hard if you're in a rush catching a train, there is however ramped access going down to where the buses are which I prefer to the lift. 4* - Great interchange for a town like Bolton, primarily useful for travel around nearby towns within Lancashire and Greater Manchester.

Diamond North West are the new kids on the block on the Bolton bus scene after the purchase of…read moreFirst Manchester's Bolton depot - meaning they now cover services running from Bolton as well as their existing base in Atherton/Wigan - they are owned by Rotala who also run bus services in other parts of the country and are based in Birmingham, however, Diamond North West's communication is based around Atherton. They have taken over multiple routes now serving the city centre including the 163 from Bury to Manchester Piccadilly via Middleton, the 8 services from Manchester to Bolton via Spinningfields and Bolton as well as many other services connecting Manchester and Bolton and the X39. One thing which impressed me is how they've set out to have brand new buses which just aren't converted buses from their predecessor on their new routes from day one - the new buses are multiple tones of blue with 2019 registration plates and from the outside do look pretty good. While they are still running some of the old First buses rebranded with their logo stickers over First - it still is a slow process which could take a while as they have a large number of buses to either completely re-design or replace - this is compared to GO North West who taken over First Manchester's depot based in Cheetham Hill who spent a while introducing some of the newly branded buses and those are still converted First buses and not brand new. As well as looking good from the outside, the new buses look pretty decent from the inside with USB sockets everywhere however especially on the 19 models they've really missed a chance to improve technology on the bus for people with disabilities. 1. Why not announce bus stops like London which can help tourists or people who struggle with sight 2. The wheelchair designated space is not big enough to support a wheelchair as it is split into two areas, the other designed for a buggy, this green pole gets in the way meaning the wheelchair has to turn to block part of the aisle into an illegal position. The ramp to get onto the bus remains manual. Services are starting to run more on time which is good but to be fair even a tortoise could beat First and there are still improvements which need to be done on that front with some services still running late or not turning up at all, which isn't a good impression to be starting off with - this does mean however sometimes having to wait at stops if they are running early to make the difference two minutes or less - it is annoying especially when the driver doesn't announce anything which causes confusion but still running on time is pretty fair for everyone. Drivers again are mixed, some coming from the company existing based in Atherton, some being brand new or coming over from First - On most occasions, I've found the bus drivers to be rude and ignorant -one of them even overcharged me costing £4.40 for a single journey: 1. In London, this would have been £1.50 or £4.50 for a whole day of bus travel or £7 for zones 1 and 2 if you want to combine the tube and DLR - which shows the expense 2. I could have got a "night" ticket for the same price, rather than charging this for a whole journey, which was just £0.40 less than a day ticket to use any service from First, Diamond or GNW in Manchester - there was also a ticket much cheaper for £3.80 - it seems unless you know prices beforehand drivers love to overcharge you with Diamond. Is Diamond an improvement on First? Yes. Overall - other than two major issues for disabled people and ticketing they are pretty solid. 3*

Joke of a company, calling them a company is a push! Terrible services by poorly organised middle…read moremanagement who are more interested in micro management and getting one over on their colleagues than providing a good service!

Bolton Railway Station is OK, it is a good local railway station for Bolton residents and…read moreconnecting into Bolton town centre, being just a short walk away from the town's shops, and even closer to both a large Sainsbury's and Morrisons supermarket, virtually across the way. The fact it is right next to the bus station, forming an interchange is handy. The staff at the ticket office seem happy to help, and the station is pretty clean overall, while it does get pretty cold, they do have a waiting room which is handy, the waiting room on the Manchester bound platforms, however, didn't seem to have a board with train times, which means it would be pretty easy to stay there too long and miss the train. There are no direct services into London from here, odds are you'll need to go into another Greater Manchester station such as Manchester Piccadilly, Stockport or Wigan, and carry on from there. The station is operated by Northern, they operate the main bulk of services from this station, however, many TPExpress services pass through the station on its' Manchester-Edinburgh route, however, this operates on a set-down only basis where you can not travel from Manchester-Bolton in either direction, but you can travel from Bolton on this service heading north, for example to Preston and Edinburgh. Considering it's a pretty small station, they probably have the friendliest staff who are reliable and work hard, which I find quite rare in small stations, which are often understaffed and with the staff which do work there, not seeming to care, so it's good to see the service here is good for any station, especially one ranked C1. 4* - Minimal facilities within the station, but clean overall with easy access into Bolton Interchange, taxi rank (outside the station) town centre and supermarkets to continue on with your journey makes it pretty good. If only the lifts were reliable and weren't constantly breaking down! UPDATE: Due to multiple recent issues at this station including the lifts breaking down on three occasions in the past month) and the toilets being out of order (even though the staff aren't aware of this) mean this station is becoming much less pleasurable to travel from, warranting a downgrade to a rather generous three.

What reviews say about Bolton station are very true. I have…read morean unsual memory of Bolton Station. Got on train at Chorley return ticket to Horwich. Told which train to get on by staion attendant. Fantasic, train went flying past Horwich and had to get off at Bolton. So all in all around a 15 minute stop over on a Bolton Platform. Was very Ghost Town like at least for that 15 minutes. And I'm sure that the attendant I spoke to on there was Boris Karloff. All I needed was a fog machine.

Intu Trafford Centre Metrolink is one of 6 new stops on the Trafford Park line on the Manchester…read moreMetrolink, it is the terminus of the line meaning both platforms are used for both directions, this pretty much means there should always be one tram in even if there is a wait to depart, which can be useful on a rainy or cold day as you can wait on the tram rather on the station's seating. The Trafford Park Line currently runs between Cornbrook and intu Trafford Centre, turning off at Pomona (following the same route as an Eccles / Media City-bound train), it is going to be extended towards Bury in the opposite direction to allow trams from all points in the city centre, currently, you would have to change at Cornbrook which is down to the line opening a lot earlier than expected and the new trams not being ready yet, basically to off-set demand on the network. The frequency of trams at the moment is every 12 minutes in both directions. It takes around 18 minutes from here to Cornbrook. Obviously, I am delighted and excited the extension has launched, early nonetheless but this station is probably the biggest disappointment on the line, mainly down to its' location within the Trafford Centre. It involves walking through a busy car park and possibly up a staircase or steep car park gradient, which is pretty dangerous to get into the main mall - this surely needs looking at perhaps with lifts. Barton Dock Road which is two minutes away, and the station you'd get to before when coming from the city centre means you don't have to go through this car park so might be better especially if you struggle with steps (the station like all Metrolink stops is step-free however so don't worry about that!) I do like how with it being the terminus of the line, there is most likely always going to be a tram in meaning you don't have to wait outside. All ticket/card readers were working, which isn't the same for other stations along the line. 3* - Pretty standard Metrolink stop but more needs to be done for ease of access into the intu Trafford Centre, after all the purpose of the station is to serve the shopping centre it is named after, perhaps a terminus with a bridge link similar to Meadowhall in Sheffield would have been a better idea.

I've been using Warrington Central much more over the past week or so and the station is improving,…read moreespecially in terms of cleanliness and service. While it is an old and basic station, it is pretty nice for an old town and it's pretty easy to get in and out of the station quickly to continue on with your journey. Minimal facilities inside the station but with Warrington's Golden Square Centre being a couple of minutes away, as well as an ASDA nearby that, is helpful. If you're heading into Manchester/Liverpool, there seem to be more services which go from here rather than Bank Quay, including the fastest train into Manchester which goes from here to Piccadilly with East Midlands Railway. 3* - Decent station for a small town, pretty minimal but improving so that's a good thing.

Warrington Central is one of two major stations in Warrington (the other being Bank Quay), and is…read moreserved by trains on 'southern route' from Liverpool to Manchester. The line was opened in 1873 by the Cheshire Lines Committee, a venture formed by the Manchester Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway and the Great Northern railway, joined by the Midland Railway. The line originally ran from Manchester Central to Liverpool Central via Garston, although services were concentrated on Piccadilly and Lime St stations respectively from the late 1960s. The station has two platforms, built on a viaduct: the original main station building on the north side, in an Italianate style of yellow stock brick with red and blue brick details, has been converted into commercial offices, and a new smaller building built on Winwick Street. The station's modern entrance houses a ticket office, small shop and coffee stand, leading via stairs (or newly-installed lifts) to the two platforms. These retain the attractive original retaining walls and their canopies, with decorated brackets, although the original wooden awnings have unfortunately been replaced by ugly corrugated steel versions. The Manchester-bound platform (1) has toilets and a waiting room, whereas the Liverpool platform (2) has only a modern glass waiting room. The station is served by three rail companies: Northern operate a half hourly Liverpool (Lime St) to Manchester (Piccadilly) service, some of which stop at all stations, with others semi-fast. TransPennine Express operate an hourly fast service to Liverpool westbound and Leeds via Manchester eastbound, some of which continue to York, Scarborough or Middlesbrough. East Midlands trains operate an hourly Liverpool to Norwich via Nottingham and Sheffield service, taking over 5 hours to Norwich! There is level access throughout, and Warrington's Bus Station (known as the 'Interchange') is a short walk away under the railway bridge.

A small Northern Railway Station, located just at the top of Church Street, Eccles. Ideal for all…read morethe shops and pubs in Eccles. This is the nearest train station to Hope Hospital, altough it is a good 20 minute walk away, but you can get a bus from the bus station. Morrisons, Eccles Bus Station and Eccles Metrolink stationis a 10 minute walk. There is no disabled access at this station, and both platforms are down flights of stairs. There is a small ticket office which is staffed part time. There are no toilets on the platforms. Both platforms have a small shelter and some seating. Timetables are loacted at the top of the station, with non on the platforms, so check your times before you go down to the platform. There is a small pay and display carpark at the top of the station. The station is poorly lit at night.