By Lauren Monaghan, Junior Local Democracy Reporter
Campaigners and passengers have warned fewer people will use Nottingham’s trams after the network put ticket prices up for the second time in six months.
On Monday (July 1) Adult single journey tickets increased by 10p, taking them to £3.30 from £3.20, with adult day tickets rising from £5.30 to £5.40.
Weekly adult and group off-peak tickets have risen 50p each, from £23 to £23.50 and £8.50 to £9.
Short-hop and group peak tickets have remained the same price.
Government data showed an increase in tram usage in Nottingham between 2022 and 2023 as people returned to the network following the pandemic.
Passenger journeys in this period showed a 58 per cent increase with 14.4 million journeys.
However, campaigner David Thornhill, the chair of Sustainable Transport Nottingham, criticised the Government’s decision to not include the tram in the £2 bus fare cap scheme.
He said: “We don’t have many tram systems, but where the bus is working side by side you can’t just pick the bus and fund that and ignore the tram.
“The logical assumption is that it’s a downhill spiral… a lot more people will cease using the tram.”
Nottingham City Transport last month confirmed that £2 single fares will remain until the end of 2024.
Nottingham travellers expressed worry over people’s ability to keep up with the price spikes.
Pharmacist Kunal Gohil, 36, works at Queen’s Medical Centre and uses the trams every week.
He said: “GMC (the union) did a discounted tram pass for employees for a period, it was excellent value, it was about £20 to £25 a month, obviously now it’s jumped to nearly double that.
“There’s people that I work with that maybe don’t quite earn as much as me where it hits them a little bit harder and they’ll have to reconsider around bussing or walking or cycling… it’s disappointing but I suppose it’s a sign of the times.”
And 19-year-old Megan Chilvers from Newark said: “It’s pathetic to be honest, there’s no point for it to go up twice [in one year].
“Because I get so many trams it’s just going to end up adding up and even though it’s not by a lot, eventually my bank balance is going to notice it.”
With the inflating tram prices and capped bus fares, some people said they are instead choosing to use buses.
Keolis and its subsidiary Nottingham Trams Limited run the city’s network as part of the Tramlink consortium.
It operates under the Nottingham Express Transit (NET) name and branding.
Student Shaloma Wright, 23, said: “I will get the bus where I can, I don’t like to get the tram anymore… I think the bus is better value for money so if I do forget my bus pass I will get on the bus still because it’s £2.
“I know that my dad, he won’t get on the tram because he thinks it’s ridiculous the prices you have to pay, he’d rather get on the bus.”
Student Josh Corah, 21, said: “I know it’s tough to rival the buses because they’ve got the £2 cap but it’s just ridiculous.
“I don’t get how they can justify it, especially when buses go more locally, they go more places, there’s only two lines on the tram… why would you even bother getting the tram when you can just get a bus?”
Andrew Conroy, chief operating officer at NET, said: “We’re always committed to ensuring we provide our customers with the very best service.
“These recent fare changes will not only allow us to do just that but will also mean we can continue offering a convenient and low-carbon public transport option for tram users for years to come.
“We’re also facing ongoing pressures due to the extension of the Government’s £2 capped bus fares which other transport providers are able to reap the benefits of, but sadly don’t currently include trams.”
