The Tyne & Wear Metro has announced that 1 million journeys have made by young people using the Pop Blue Smartcard.

Introduced by Nexus, the body which owns and manage the Metro, the Pop Blue Smartcard allows 16-18 year olds the opportunity to make a single trip on the Tyne & Wear Metro for £1.

The Pop Blue Smartcard has been issued to over 11,000 young people since it was launched in January 2018 and over 1/3 of 16-18 year olds now travel with Pop Blue.

The smartcard can be topped up online, at a Metro ticket machine or a Mexus TravelShop. A £2 daily price cap applies regardless of the number of trips.

For more information visit www.nexus.org.uk/popblue

What did the officials say?

Customer Services Director at Nexus, Huw Lewis, said:

“We’re giving young people great value on the cost of their travel with Pop blue, with single trips for just a £1 and £2 to travel all day.

“Since we launched this product we have seen a million more journeys by young people.

“Pop blue has become increasingly popular and we now have one third of all local 16 to 18 year-olds buying their travel in this way. It’s a really simple Pay As You Go smart card.

“We’ve delivered great value, reflecting the way teenagers told us they want to pay for public transport. Pop blue fits round school and college timetables and free time activities.

“We offer the best possible value through Pop blue. More young people choosing public transport now is good news for the future of Metro and for our environment as we tackle air quality.”

Cllr Gladys Hobson, Chair of the Joint Transport Committee Tyne and Wear Sub-Committee, said:

“Creating safe, reliable and sustainable public transport networks is crucial if we are to tackle climate change and air quality.

“Incentivising young passengers to use the Metro system helps create lifelong habits and I’d encourage people to take advantage of this great way to travel.”

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