The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) have announced that since the South Yorkshire Supertram network returned to public control in March 2024 10 million passenger journeys have been recorded. This figure was reached at the start of May 2025 in a little over 13 months since Stagecoach’s operation came to an end.
Since Supertram came back into public control, investment has increased to £15.3 million to improve the network whilst passenger numbers have increased alongside revenue. Tram reliability is said to have been at 97% for 2024/5 (which is an even more remarkable figure when you consider major tram shortages this March which led to a reduction in the tram frequency for over a week) and a deep cleaning exercise was implemented to clean all trams and stops within the first 100 days of public control.
April 2025 also saw the start of a dogs on trams trial after the results of a consultation where over 10,000 people had their say and came out in favour of allowing well-behaved dogs on the trams. Since the start of the pilot over 1,800 dogs have travelled on Supertram. A decision will be made later this year on whether to extend the pilot to a permanent fixture.
Looking further ahead and winter 2025 should see the opening of a new stop on the Tram-Train route at Magna, serving visitors to the Magna Science Adventure Centre and people living and working in Templeborough, Rotherham. There are also hopes – subject to funding – that the SYMCA will be able to purchase a new tram fleet by 2032.
Oliver Coppard, Mayor of South Yorkshire, said: “Just over a year ago we took back control of our tram network; a network that hadn’t had much love or investment over its nearly thirty years of life, a network that didn’t work for all too many people.
“To have now hit 10 million passenger journeys on Supertram since bringing it back under our control is a huge achievement. I’m proud of the dedicated Supertram team who work hard day in and day out and put people and passengers at the heart of what they do.
“There are still challenges, I know. But we’re making huge strides in our journey back to a public transport system that puts people first. We’re investing tens of millions of pounds into repairing and renewing the network, the number of people travelling without a ticket is down, revenues are up, and more people are using the tram.
“My ambition is nothing less than a world-class public transport network for South Yorkshire. But we won’t get there just with big strides, it’s also about the small steps. And step by step, we’re fixing public transport in South Yorkshire.”
Sean English, Managing Director of Supertram, added: “his milestone is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our entire team since Supertram returned to public control. Reaching 10 million passenger journeys reflects the renewed confidence people have in our network. With continued investment, improved services, and growing passenger numbers, we’re proud to support the Mayor’s vision of putting the public at the heart of public transport.”
A new tram fleet is a complete waste of money! When the people of Sheffield were originally ‘sold’ the idea of Supertram at a number of public consultation evenings, a long vehicle lifespan was one of the major plus points they pushed. I know this because I was there in the room. More recently a public survey came back in favour of keeping the tramway running as it currently is and NOT investing millions in new vehicles unless these were to increase rather than replace the current fleet. And with vehicle availability still at 97% I would suggest than fleet replacement shouldn’t even be a consideration for many years to come.
What the Mayor could do is sort out the woefully bad Tram-Train service, which only ever managed to produce the promised 20 minute headway service for a few months when it first opened. The terminus (behind the bins on a windswept platform round the back of Parkgate retail park also needs a lot more thought. Meanwhile all the trams are still running in full (but fading) Stagecoach livery. I bit of brain power would have seen then being gradually painted into the smart traditional blue and cream of the original Sheffield trams and would probably win a lot more support for the operation in the process.