Australia, Bus Industry News

Transperth buses help spark WA PT bounce back

WA is celebrating record patronage numbers on public transport for February, aided by Transperth bus services

The Western Australian government is reporting monthly patronage numbers on its public transport services have bounced back strongly.

The WA government says Transperth monthly bus patronage numbers have reached its highest level in three years, with a total of 11.1 million passengers using public transport in the state in February.

Though February is a short month, the WA government says the total result on buses, trains and ferries was the best patronage number recorded in the state since the 12.2 million in February 2020.

The government says the introduction of the two-zone fare cap on January 1 last year has also underpinned the patronage rise, with longer journeys – especially between Perth and Mandurah – enjoying better-than-average increases.


RELATED ARTICLE: SkyBus passenger soar at Hobart Airport


Transperth’s patronage was well on track for an annual increase in early 2020, before the impact of the pandemic.

Based on daily SmartRider tags, Transperth’s system-wide patronage has been running at 90-95 per cent of pre-COVID levels for most of this year, firming to the high 90s over the past few weeks.

“This is a great result and highlights how important the public transport network is for our community,” WA transport minister Rita Saffioti says.

“COVID had a significant and detrimental impact on patronage levels, but the bounce back highlights why significant investment through our METRONET program and giving people greater access to public transport is so important.”

  1. Australian Truck Radio Listen Live
Send this to a friend