00:00From daily commutes to broader transport strategy, the Liverpool City region is reshaping how people move, aiming for accessibility, affordability
00:09and a net zero future by 2035.
00:12We've been on the streets of Liverpool to find out how you feel about the local public transport network.
00:18Well, we've just started to do it now because obviously we've got a bus pass, which is ideal for Merseyside
00:26because you can want to ferry the train and everything, can't you?
00:29Oh, I think it's brilliant, especially though we get the, because we're over the side and we get the number
00:34one and the extra.
00:35It's good, but it takes us straight, yeah, it's good, yeah.
00:41Please nationalise the rail, they're just thinking, one, Liverpool's rail connections aren't the best.
00:48I don't feel especially a North End Galee going to a South End Galee.
00:53For decades, commuters on Mersey Rail have queued for tickets, juggling change or paper passes.
00:57Now the network's taken a significant step into the digital age.
01:01Contactless ticketing's been rolled out across the region, allowing passengers to tap in and out using a mobile phone, bank
01:08card, smartwatch or linked MetroCard.
01:11We used to have the night bus, they stopped doing that and I thought that was brilliant because I could
01:18just go home at the early hours of the morning instead of like 11-ish.
01:21So I'm restricted in that way.
01:24I do really agree with this, especially the fact that if you buy a train line ticket for a Mersey
01:29Rail train, you can't actually use it, which has actually increased people getting fines and not fully understanding how it
01:35works, which I think is a very, very bad grey area.
01:37I think if it was nationalised and in a tap and go style, I think it would make things a
01:42lot easier and a lot more quicker.
01:43More controlled buses are maybe in the early hours because the taxis are really expensive.
01:51Looking ahead, city leaders are considering bringing Mersey Rail services under public control.
01:56With the current contract expiring in 2028, a full analysis will assess how public ownership could improve integration across trains,
02:05buses, ferries and active travel.
02:07Buses are my life if I'm ever getting public transport these days.
02:11A perfect example of this, I went to Manchester last weekend to travel into the city centre to be able
02:14to get to Manchester because getting to Waverty Station wasn't an option for me.
02:19I think if they did that and put it back in the hands of the people, I think we would
02:23see a lot of improvement.
02:26Getting from where we live in St Helens to here is a dream, train-wise, bus-wise and whatever, but
02:33well organised.
02:34I rarely use the train.
02:36Yeah, I use the overnight trains, but I've found now the buses a lot better for me.
02:43The region's also embracing greener travel, with the first of over 100 publicly owned electric buses having been delivered.
02:51They'll join a network where fares and routes are set by the authority, putting passengers rather than shareholders at the
02:58centre of decisions.
Comments