More than 360 million journeys have been made using Mayor Sadiq Khan’s Hopper fare in the three years since it launched, according to new figures released today by Transport for London.
A key pledge in the Mayor’s manifesto and launched in September 2016, the Hopper allows passengers to make unlimited bus or tram journeys for £1.50 within one hour of starting their journey.
Today’s figures show that more than 450,000 Hopper journeys are made every day, with Route 18 the most popular with around 4,600 daily ‘hops’.
Mayor Khan said: “I promised to introduce the Hopper fare in my manifesto, so I am delighted that it continues to be such a huge success, with nearly half a million journeys now benefitting every single day.”
Claire Mann, Director of Bus Operations at TfL, added: “The Hopper fare is helping to open up bus and tram travel across London for millions of people.
“We’re delighted the difference this fare has already made to so many who live, work and visit London, and remain committed to ensuring public transport in London remains accessible and convenient for all.”
TfL regularly promotes the Hopper, including through marketing emails, but despite its popularity with passengers overall bus ridership levels in London continue to fall.
The agency’s most recent reports show 516 million journeys were made in the first quarter of the year, down 7m (1.3%) on the same period last year after adjustments for public holidays, strikes and other one-off events.
Unadjusted figures show journey numbers are 14m (505m v 519m) lower than in Q1 2018/19. Tram journeys are also down by 1.6% when compared to the previous year.
Despite the drop in journey numbers, the latest report to the TfL board shows that fares income on the bus network is currently £16m higher than forecast.
