UK and Ireland Light Rail Round-up | Growth, Charity Initiatives and Workforce Updates | Friday 16th January 2026
- UKTram
- 49 minutes ago
- 7 min read
In this week’s UK and Ireland light rail news round-up: Blackpool Transport extends its £10 Family Saver ticket following a surge in demand, Nottingham Express Transit confirms weekend works on the Clifton route and Edinburgh’s bus and tram networks record more than 130 million journeys in 2025. Plus, updates on mass transit plans in West Yorkshire and Coventry, workforce appointments and retirements across Supertram, Metro and NET, sector-wide skills development highlighted by LRSSB, and heritage and cultural attractions announced at Beamish and Seaton Tramway.
West Midlands Metro employees have raised more than £5,000 for Black Country Women’s Aid through a year of fundraising and volunteering activity. Staff donated their time to support the West Bromwich-based charity during organised volunteer days and contributed more than 50 gifts over the festive period.
Funds were raised through a mix of raffles, sponsored walks, coffee mornings, ad hoc donations and cash from unclaimed lost property, which was matched through the Big Give campaign. Black Country Women’s Aid supports more than 8,000 victims of abuse each year and was Metro’s Charity of the Year for 2025, continuing a long-running programme of community-focused fundraising.
West Midlands Combined Authority has submitted proposed amendments to update the West Midlands Metro Byelaws under the Midland Metro Act 1989. The changes are intended to strengthen fare enforcement, improve passenger safety and modernise how the Metro network is operated, with the updated byelaws expected to be introduced at a later date.
The proposals are open for public comment, with representations invited to the Department for Transport by Saturday 14 February 2026. Full details of the current byelaws and the proposed 2026 updates have been published online, with feedback accepted by email or in person.
Blackpool Transport has extended its £10 Family Saver ticket into the New Year following an uplift in patronage over the Christmas period. Tens of thousands of tickets were sold in December, with customer numbers rising by more than 20 per cent as families took advantage of unlimited bus and tram travel across the Fylde Coast.
In total, 78,000 passengers used the offer, prompting the operator to continue the ticket beyond its original end date. The Family Saver allows one or two adults and up to three children aged 16 or under to travel all day for £10, supporting affordable, spontaneous travel for leisure and everyday journeys.
Lothian Buses and Edinburgh Trams have reported continued growth in passenger numbers across the capital’s bus and tram networks during 2025, with more than 130 million customer journeys recorded. Lothian Buses carried 119 million passengers, a 2.6 per cent increase on 2024, while Edinburgh Trams recorded a further 3.3 per cent rise, reaching 12.5 million journeys.
The growth follows a particularly busy year for the city’s public transport network, supporting major events and a strong festival season, alongside the introduction of contactless payments on trams. The change allows customers to benefit from daily and weekly inter-modal fare capping across both bus and tram services, strengthening integration across the network.
Coventry City Council has approved plans for an 800-metre demonstrator section of the Coventry Very Light Rail scheme, marking a significant step forward for the project. As reported by Coventry Live, construction will begin on a line running between Coventry Railway Station and the Coventry University Technology Park.
The approved plans include a new service and charging area on Mile Lane, with the demonstrator designed to operate alongside live traffic. The scheme is expected to be fully operational by October 2027, with the route intended to showcase the system’s technology and suitability for wider deployment.
Nottingham Express Transit has confirmed that essential maintenance work will take place on the Clifton route between Queens Walk and Clifton South Park & Ride over the weekend of the 24th and 25th of January. Tram services will not operate between these stops during the works, with normal service expected to resume on Monday 2th January.
The work includes replacement of track ballast at Wilford Lane following historic flood damage, alongside wider maintenance activity on the Clifton line. A temporary bus replacement service will run between Queens Walk and Clifton South Park & Ride, with road diversions and accessible pedestrian routes in place while the works are carried out.
West Yorkshire Combined Authority has shared the journey so far in the development of its Mass Transit programme, charting progress from early public engagement through to the next stages of business case preparation. In summer 2024, almost 5,000 people took part in a consultation on 10 route options, including proposals to link Leeds and Bradford and connect south Leeds with the city centre.
Further funding was confirmed in July 2025 through West Yorkshire’s £2.1 billion Transport for City Regions settlement, followed by renewed government backing in December 2025 after an independent peer review. The programme is now preparing a Strategic Outline Case, due for submission towards the end of summer 2026, with plans for a further public consultation on phase one proposals subject to government approval.
Tyne and Wear Metro worker Phil Taylor has retired after almost five decades of service, having joined the network as its youngest-ever train driver when operations began in August 1980. Aged just 19 at the time, Phil remains the youngest person to have joined the Metro train crew, starting his career on the same fleet now being phased out and replaced by new Stadler trains.
During his career, Phil spent 14 years as a Metro driver before moving into driver training, operations management and incident response. His most recent role was Service Delivery Controller in the Metro control room, bringing his experience full circle in supporting the day-to-day running of the network.
Keolis Nottingham has opened recruitment for new Tram Drivers as it looks to grow its operational workforce in 2026. The full-time roles are based in Nottingham, with salaries starting from £27,533, and are open to applicants with a valid driving licence.
Successful candidates will receive full training and join a talent pool following assessment days taking place in January and February 2026. The roles involve operating trams safely across the network, delivering customer service and working a range of shifts, including weekends and bank holidays, with benefits including free travel, pension provision and pay progression.
Sheffield Supertram has appointed Trevor Stocker as its new Head of Service Delivery. Trevor brings more than 20 years’ experience in tram driving and operations management, with a strong background in operational leadership.
In his new role, he will oversee service delivery across the Supertram network, supporting the continued performance and reliability of tram operations in Sheffield.
Heritage
Beamish Tramway trams covered 16,305 miles during 2025, despite no services operating between January and April due to major track relaying works. The figures were reported by British Trams Online and were achieved with only four trams in service, highlighting the intensity of operations across the year.
Further infrastructure investment is planned for 2026, including sleeper renewals, rail welding, overhead line equipment renewal and works at the Foulbridge bus turning circle.
Seaton Tramway will host the internationally recognised Comedy Wildlife Photography Exhibition at Seaton Station from the 17th January to 19th April. The exhibition features a collection of humorous, heart-warming and thought-provoking wildlife images from photographers around the world.
The exhibition forms part of Seaton Tramway’s wider visitor offering, giving passengers and visitors an added attraction alongside tram journeys through the Axe Valley, with further details available via the Tramway’s website.
UKTram and LRSSB
UKTram has officially launched its new Members Hub, a dedicated online space designed to share resources, insight and collaboration tools for light rail professionals across the UK and Ireland.
The hub has been developed to support members with easy access to practical information, shared experience and sector intelligence, all in one place. It represents another step in UKTram’s commitment to delivering tangible value through membership and creating stronger connections across the community.Â
The Light Rail Safety and Standards Board has highlighted a new approach to skills and training through its latest Let’s Talk Light Rail podcast, focusing on the development of the sector-wide Skills Hub. The digital platform is designed to standardise competencies, track certifications and help operators identify appropriate training and development pathways.
The Skills Hub has already been adopted by Edinburgh Trams, Sheffield Supertram and West Midlands Metro, with further operators expected to join in 2026. In the podcast, LRSSB Chief Executive Carl Williams explains how the platform supports greater visibility of training activity while creating a shared space for operators to recognise and learn from best practice across the sector. UKTram highlights strong momentum for light rail in 2026 outlook blog >>
UKTram has published a new blog, 2026 in Focus: Light Rail momentum builds across the UK and Ireland, examining the growing confidence, demand and investment shaping the sector’s outlook. The blog points to strong performance across existing networks, supported by new fleets, capacity enhancements, operational innovation and ongoing extensions.
It also highlights a strengthening pipeline of new light rail, tram-train, very light rail and mass transit schemes, reinforced by £15.6bn confirmed for local transport in the Government’s 2025 Budget and Spending Review.
The next round-up will be published on Friday, 23rd January, to be included in the round-up or the Members News section of the UKTram website. Please send your press releases, event updates and career opportunities to chelsea.branch@uktram.co.uk