THOUSANDS of Bury commuters faced chaos during two stoppages by First Manchester bus drivers which crippled services.

But the East Lancs Railway rode to the rescue to help 22 Bury primary school children whose picnic outing to Holcombe Hill seemed doomed.

Thanks to a decision by the ELR to run a service between Ramsbottom and Bury, youngsters from Holy Trinity CE Primary were able to enjoy a day out.

Teacher Miss Linda Parkington, who along with headteacher Mr Simon Paine accompanied the children, said: "This is an event that we put on every year for children who are leaving us to go to high school."

The normally busy Bury Interchange was deserted as a result of the stoppage by the 1,750 First Manchester drivers at the company's six depots. The Transport and General Workers' Union has already rejected a 4.5 per cent pay offer and a special weighting for the lower-scale drivers.

The offer is linked to a limited change in the length of the working day which First Manchester say would mean 40 per cent of drivers facing what the company term a "modest extension to the working day".

No dates have been been set as yet for the resumption of talks between both sides.

East Lancs ran a full timetable of trains on Friday (July 7)and yesterday (Mon July 10) to help bus passengers who would otherwise have been stranded.

Metrolink services along the Bury-Manchester line were busier than normal on both strike days, particularly the morning and evening rush hours.

A spokesman for the Transport and General Workers' Union said yesterday: "Nobody takes strike action lightly but our members are determined that First Manchester listen to our concerns over pay and hours.

"There are potential issues of public safety here as drivers are being asked to work longer hours for an increase in pay.

"We want to see an end to this dispute by negotiation. We are urging First Manchester to talk with us."

Russell Gard, the bus company's operations director, commented: "As long as the threat of industrial action remains, we cannot enter into any formal negotiations.

"We want this situation resolved quickly and are prepared to do everything to make ourselves available to the staff side in order to achieve a settlement."

At this stage, it is not known whether drivers plan any further stoppages.