Metro passenger numbers soar after extension
THE number of people using the Midland Metro soared to record levels last year after the tram system was extended through the streets of Birmingham city centre.
Passenger figures jumped from five million in 2015 to 6.6 million in 2016 after trams returned to the city centre for the first time in more than 50 years, initially going to Bull Street and then to the redeveloped New Street station.
The latest forecast for the 12 months between the start of June last year, when the extension to New Street opened, and the end of May this year, shows the number of passengers is set to top seven million – up by more than two million on 2015.
Councillor Roger Horton, lead member for rail and Metro on the WMCA’s Transport Delivery Committee, said the growth should be seen as an emphatic endorsement of the city centre extension.
“This impressive increase shows why the WMCA is moving forward with a £1.2 billion expansion of the tram network and why Metro is an important part of the authority’s economic and transport plans,” he said.
“These future tram extensions will be a catalyst for economic growth and jobs and will significantly improve people’s ability to travel between key destinations in the West Midlands, including the forthcoming HS2 stations.”
Colin Saward, managing director of National Express Midland Metro which operates the system on behalf of TfWM, added: “We are delighted to welcome these millions of extra customers on board.
“We brought in contactless payment when the Birmingham city centre extension opened. We thought it would make travelling by tram more attractive. We were proved right. Now 20 per cent of tickets sold on the tram are bought using contactless.
“More than two thirds of our customers tell us they like contactless because it’s quicker and they don’t need to carry cash.”