South London bus users have been making the most of the Mayor’s new ‘hopper’ fare in the first six weeks since it was introduced.

Two of the most popular routes for passengers using the hopper fare are in south London, including the 53 from Orchard Road, Plumstead to Horse Guards Parade in Westminster and the 109 from Brixton Station to Croydon Library.

Ten million journeys have been made using the fare which enables passengers to take a £1.50 bus or tram journey and change onto another bus or tram for free within one hour of touching in at the start of the trip.

South Londoners have also benefitted from using the hopper on the tram network as 80,000 journeys involved switching from a bus to a tram, and 65,000 changing from a tram to a bus.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, said: “I’m delighted that the ‘Hopper’ fare is making such a big difference to the lives of Londoners. We must ensure that everyone can afford to travel around our city, particularly people who rely on public transport to get to work or to study.

“Ten million journeys so far exceeds all my expectations, and the amount of people using the ‘Hopper’ shows how vital our buses are to the lives of Londoners all across our city.

“Alongside our commitment to freeze all TfL fares, our ‘Hopper’ fare is a crucial part of our plans to make it more affordable to live and work in London.”

Lianna Etkind, from Campaign for Better Transport, said: “It is great that the Hopper fare is making travel by public transport more affordable and encouraging more Londoners to use the bus to get around the city.

“London roads are already at bursting point so we need to see more people on the bus and out of their car, which not only helps with congestion but with the already dangerous levels of pollution in London.”

TfL is now working on delivering unlimited bus and tram transfers within one hour, which is not currently possible due to limits with the existing technology.

Plans are for TfL to deliver unlimited bus and tram journeys in an hour from 2018.

In addition to this, from 2018, passengers who travel on a Tube or train between their two or more bus or tram journeys will also be eligible for the ‘Hopper’ fare.