People living and working near Salford Quays were left bewildered this morning as dozens of coaches descended on the area while beeping their horns.
Coach drivers from across the country took to streets in the area making a racket shortly before midday.
The noise caused a mixture of consternation and confusion among many onlookers, with some taking to social media to ask what was going on.
Video footage shows a convoy of coaches continuously beeping their horns as they performed laps around the Quays.
But the raucous did had a serious purpose to it.
It was part of 'Honk for Hope' - a Europe-wide campaign of coach firms raising awareness of their plight of their industry during the coronavirus pandemic.
Bosses and drivers say they feel aggrieved as they’re often called upon to help out in a crisis - such as last-minute rail replacement services - but are not receiving support when they need it.
The industry’s campaign for financial support was rejected by ministers, who said no extra help beyond schemes that capture the wider economy was possible.
The coach industry is also not eligible for the Retail, Hospitality and Leisure Grant Fund.
The organiser of today's protest, Gavin Stapley, travelled up from Essex to take part.
He said: "We are receiving criticism wherever we go but this is not just us making noise for the sake of it.
"This is operators doing the best they can to get some recognition of our plight.
"There are approximately 42,000 people in or linked directly to the coach industry and those jobs are at risk.
"The government are not even promoting what we do, so members of the public are not getting a clear picture on whether they can use coaches or not.
"Over 90pc of operators did not turn a wheel between March 20 and July 12.
"We are doing this up and down the country. The more support we can get, financially and in terms of understanding, the better."
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