Travel Swift card used for more than 50 million journeys in the West Midlands

The growth is up from 35.5 million journeys in 2017 and bosses say is a result of better value ticket options, greater availability and a growing range of additional uses.

Swift cards are available as season tickets for regular commuters and as pay-as-you-go for occasional public transport users. The cards can also be bought and topped up in shops, ordered online and even purchased from self-service machines at bus stations.

The Swift card is developed and operated by Transport for West Midlands (TfWM), part of the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) working with bus, rail and tram operators.

While smart ticketing is usually associated with a plastic smart card, Swift was the first ticketing scheme in the UK to partner with Google to add Swift products directly into your mobile phone. This is currently available on West Midlands Metro.

Further recent innovations include using Swift to access gyms in Wolverhampton. Work is under way to add more uses including cycle and car hire schemes.

West Midlands Mayor, Andy Street, said: "The Swift smart travel card offers great value and convenience for travellers and I am not surprised it has become one of the most successful in the country.

“On top of this we are also developing innovative ways to make it easier for people to pay for their journeys, such as mobile ticketing. Thanks to this approach and our £4 billion investment in bus, rail and Metro services, we are seeing real growth in numbers of people using public transport.”

Councillor Ian Ward, WMCA's portfolio holder for transport, added: "Swift is great for travellers as not only does it offer discount on cash fares, but can be used by people regardless of their credit rating or whether or not they have a bank account or debit card removing a barrier to public transport.

“And next year we are also launching a new way of using Swift where customers can use the card for whatever journeys they need to make safe in the knowledge that Swift will work out the best value fare over the day or week.”

Swift cards are available by visiting www.myswiftcard.com, or by visiting Travel Shops, Payzone outlets and at five self-service kiosks installed at key locations.