More than 1.207 million journeys were taken on public transport in February – the highest number of public transport journeys recorded in a month since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and a return to more than 94.5 per cent of pre-COVID (2019) patronage, according to MyWay data.
On weekends, 126 per cent more journeys were taken compared to February 2019, averaging 18,177 daily weekend journeys.
“It’s great to see more Canberrans returning to public transport after the pandemic saw patronage drop in cities around the world,” transport minister Chris Steel said.
“More than 100,000 passenger journeys were recorded during the National Multicultural Festival alone, which means our public transport recovery is gathering real pace.”
The National Multicultural Festival and the Royal Canberra Show bolstered patronage last month, but both these events also occurred in February 2019.
Mr Steel said the government was improving the public transport network.
“Our goal is for public transport to make a full recovery from the impacts of the pandemic and keep growing public transport patronage into the future,” he said.
“It’s an exciting time for public transport in Canberra: 12 electric buses joining the fleet, 90 more electric buses being procured, light rail being extended south, and a new ticketing system being rolled out.
- New bus smell as first of ACT’s zero-emissions fleet hits the road (28 January)
- New interchange and bus timetable to cope with worst months of ACT’s light rail disruption (23 January)
- ACT government vetoes opposition call to stop light rail (8 February)
- Smart ticketing system MyWay+ coming to ACT (27 February)
“These improvements are about making it as easy and as comfortable as possible to use public transport in Canberra, and will encourage even more people to jump on board.”
For more information on Canberra’s public transport services, visit the public transport recovery plan refresh at: www.transport.act.gov.au/planning-for-the-future
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