600,000 free bus tickets in new West Midlands 'try-before-you-buy' scheme

The incentive will be offered to employers to invite staff who travel by car to work to help encourage more people to travel by bus meaning 600,000 free bus journeys.

The new scheme hopes to encourage more people to switch to bus travel long-term, help keep more bus services on the road and reduce traffic congestion and pollution across the West Midlands.

Employers who are offered the scheme will need to invite their staff to sign up for a Swift travel card or account to get a period of free or discounted bus travel, similar to new customer deals offered by streaming companies.

Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands and the West Midlands Combined Authority chair, said: "Buses are the backbone of our public transport network providing vital services for hundreds of thousands of people every day.

"I’m really pleased therefore that patronage on our buses is now above pre-pandemic levels, however, we still need to do so much more to get people onto public transport to tackle congestion and the climate emergency.

"That’s why we’ve launched this new scheme to entice more people on board our buses, and I would urge anyone offered the chance - both lapsed and first-time bus customers - to take part and give the bus a go.

"This new scheme is of course just one part of a wide range of improvements we are bringing to our bus network with investment in cleaner zero-emission buses, bus priority measures on the new Sprint routes improving reliability, and some of the cheapest bus fares in the country."

Many large employers in the region already benefit from the discounted ticketing, including NHS Trusts that have worked with National Express West Midlands and Travel for West Midlands.

Councillor Mike Bird, WMCA portfolio holder for transport and leader of Walsall Council, said: "From electric buses in Coventry to the tram extension in the Black Country, we are putting unprecedented funding into our public transport to ensure more people have affordable public transport linking them to job and leisure opportunities across our region and beyond.

"Crucially, while bus services in many other parts of the country have been cut in recent years, we have protected them here in the West Midlands and are looking at new ways, including this incentive scheme, to build a sustainable future for our bus services."

The new bus travel incentive will be offered to various target groups, including large employers, hospitals and retailers.