Tram users face above-inflation fare rise across the West Midlands

Local TV

West Midlands tram fares are going up by up to ten percent from the new year, as leaders move to cut the subsidy needed to keep the Metro running. The report breaks down what the new prices mean for regular passengers and asks whether the fare rise is a fair price for a growing but still heavily supported network.

Transcript

00:00Tramfares are rising across the West Midlands as many people already feel pressured by higher

00:08living costs. From the new year, single tickets go by as much as 50p and season passes rise

00:14by around 10%, after regional leaders backed an above inflation increase to steady the

00:20metro's finances. A short zone one-trip moves from £2.30 to £2.50. A weekly pass climbs

00:28from just over £12 to more than £13. A monthly ticket across zones one and two heads towards

00:35£62. Concessionary users stay protected but most paying adults will feel the change.

00:42The combined authority says tramfares have lagged behind buses and trains and that without this

00:47rise the metro would depend even more on subsidy. The network has grown and more lines are planned

00:53but those projects run into hundreds of millions and still rely on public cash. For those who

01:00rely on the tram, the rise is not abstract, it's a weekly cost for a service that, while expanding,

01:06has faced lung suspensions and mixed reliability. For many the tram isn't a luxury, it's the

01:12only route that gets them to work on time. The authorities' papers describe metro demand

01:17as relatively fixed, assuming people will stay, even as prices rise. If that call is wrong,

01:23the system risks a cycle of falling numbers, higher subsidy and fresh pressure for further

01:28increases. At its core this is about who carries the cost of a growing tram network, the wider

01:34transport budget that also supports buses or the people tapping in each day who already

01:40feel every rise in their travel bill.

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