Just over a year since free WiFi was launched on Greater Manchester Metrolink’s fleet of trams, customers have clocked up a staggering 5 million sessions.

​More than 400,000 people have signed up to use the free WiFi, which is available on all 116 Metrolink trams.

The £2.4million initiative launched at the end of March last year and marked a major step forward in Greater Manchester’s ambition to become a world top 20 digital city. 

Metrolink’s free WiFi is easy to sign up to, free to use, and has no time restrictions – all customers need is a WiFi enabled device.  All mainstream laptops, tablets, PDAs smartphones and web browsers are supported.

Last month alone there were more than half a million WiFi sessions as Metrolink customers surfed the web for free on their commute.

Free WiFi is also available on 20 buses running the free city centre Metroshuttle service, as well as hundreds of public buildings in Manchester and Salford.

Councillor Andrew Fender, Chair of the TfGM Committee, said: “It’s no surprise the free WiFi initiative has been so popular. We’re helping people make best use of their travelling time – whether it’s doing some work on their commute or messaging a friend.

“It’s also good for visitors to the region, who can plan their travel and find out what’s going on without racking up huge mobile bills. 

“We now have over 34 million passenger journeys made on Metrolink a year, which means an awful lot of customers taking advantage of this great initiative.

“The free WiFi initiative has proved excellent value for money, keeping existing passengers happy and, I’m sure, helping to attract new customers.”

Metrolink Director Peter Cushing added: “More than ever, train and tram carriages are being used as mobile offices, places to shop and living rooms on the move as people take advantage of increased connectivity.

“In this day and age quick and easy access to WiFi is essential for businesspeople and individuals to be able to do work, surf the web, and keep in contact while they are on our trams.

“I’m pleased we’ve had such a great reaction from our customers to the free WiFi initiative and I look forward to seeing more and more people register as Metrolink use increases.”

Passengers simply need to look for the hotspot called “Metrolink WiFi”, complete the registration page (which only needs to be done on the first visit), agree to the terms and conditions and click ‘connect’. From then on, their device will search for and connect to free WiFi every time they board.