Adelaide public transport patronage slumps

Overall boardings for train, tram and bus services dropped by 3.6% between July 2011 and June 2012, down from 65.9 million in 2010/11 to 63.5 million this financial year, the lowest total since 2004/05.

Total patronage has dropped 7.1% since the 2009/10 record year of 68.38 million passenger trips. The Advertiser reports that the State Transport Department's target for 2011/12 was 70 million boardings.

On the Adelaide Metro suburban rail network over 2 million journies have been lost over the last two years, falling from a high of 11.75 million passengers in 2009/2010 to 9.61 million for the last financial year - a drop of over 18%.

Widespread dissatisfaction with the standard and reliability of services across all modes is cited as the major reason for the decline in passenger numbers.

However, the rail network has also seen a number of prolonged shutdowns lasting several months at a time to allow for rehabilitation and pre-electrification works to be undertaken, principally on the major routes to Gawler and Noarlunga lines. A number of further disruptions are anticipated in the next two years which are likely to have a further detrimental impact on these numbers.