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The number of passengers using the Tyne and Wear Metro has risen by almost 500,000 in the last year. Nexus has welcomed the latest figures which show 36,635 used Metro in the year to the end of October 2006. This represents a rise of 1.4 percent compared to the same 12-month period in 2005. The number of people who used Metro in October was 9.2 percent higher than the same month last year. Bernard Garner, Director General of Nexus, said: “These encouraging figures show Metro is heading in the right direction. “As we prepare our case for a £500m investment to modernise Metro, these figures underline how important the system is to everyday life in Tyne and Wear. “Metro has a vital role to play reducing congestion while also empowering commuters and shoppers to choose a cleaner option by leaving the car at home. “On an average weekday 123,000 people are now using Metro, which plays a huge part in taking traffic of our crowded roads.” Mick Carbro, Metro Director, said: “Metro provides a regular, reliable and good-value journey for passengers. “We introduced a new timetable in December last year offering an unparalleled three-minute frequency through central Newcastle at peak times, and customers have responded. “At the same time we cut the price of an annual all-zone season ticket to £399, giving unlimited travel for just £8 a week.” In the year to the end of October 2006 36,635,000 passengers used Metro, compared to 36,144,000 in the year to the end of October 2005 – representing a rise of 491,000 passengers or 1.4%. The figure for the month of October alone was 3,159,000 compared to 2,893,000 in October 2005 – a rise of 9.2% Figures adjusted to take account of the introduction of the Metro Gold Card show a 7.7% year-on-year rise in passenger numbers. Gold Card allows pensioners and disabled passengers who hold Concessionary Travel passes unlimited travel for just £8 a year. It was introduced in April this year at the same time as CT pass holders were given free local bus travel. Figures for October showed there had been a 21% rise in the number of CT pass holders travelling on Metro, compared to the same month last year. Mr Carbro added: “Gold Card has been a huge success, but even without it there has been a significant rise in passenger numbers. “We can date this rise from around February this year, two months before Gold Card was introduced. “We said during the summer that we had halted the recent decline in Metro use by fare-paying passengers. Now we can show we are seeing an upturn.” The figures published today are based on Nexus’ continuous monitoring of passenger journeys.
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