Metro Tasmania is the primary provider of public transport

Public transport

Public transport is a shared passenger transportation service which is available for use by the general public, as distinct from modes such as taxicab, car pooling or hired buses which are not shared by strangers without private arrangement.Public transport modes include buses, trolleybuses, trams...

 in the Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

n state of Tasmania

Tasmania

Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...

. For bus timetable and route information see the Metro website. It operates only buses, as there are no longer any public transport trains, trams or trolley buses operating in Tasmania, and the few passenger ferries in Hobart are small independent operations.

As such it is by far the largest transport network in the state, and has its three major operations in the largest population centres of Hobart

Hobart

Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...

, Launceston

Launceston, Tasmania

Launceston is a city in the north of the state of Tasmania, Australia at the junction of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River. Launceston is the second largest city in Tasmania after the state capital Hobart...

, and the North-West.

History

Metro Tasmania's history goes back over 100 years. Its precursor, The Hobart Electric Tram Company began operation in 1893, one of the earliest such operators in the world. The Hobart City Council purchased the company in 1913 and operated as Hobart Municipal Tramways.

In 1955 a statutory authority, the Metropolitan Transport Trust (MTT) was formed, this entity took over the Tramways from the Hobart City Council along with the Launceston Municipal Tramways, which had been operated by the Launceston City Council since 1911. On commencement MTT operated trams, trolley, petrol and diesel buses.

In 1960 MTT acquired the operations of Norton Coaches which provided bus services in the Burnie area. This resulted in the MTT operating transport services in the South, North and North-West regions of Tasmania.

MTT continued to operate until rebranded in the 1990s as Metro. Metro Tasmania Pty Ltd is a state-owned company established in February 1998. In May 1999 Metro purchased Hobart Coaches which operated services to New Norfolk, Richmond, Blackmans Bay and the Channel area; outlying areas of Hobart. Hobart Coaches is now the regional services division of Metro.

In December 2008, Metro sold its New Norfolk services to O'Driscoll Coaches.

Operations

Metro Tasmania is a growing network catering to the changing needs of Tasmania's main population centres. Currently employing 413 people (76 per cent of whom work in Hobart), it has over 200 buses on 800 routes which do more than 630,000 trips per year covering over 10.5 million kilometres. Metro owns and operates six interchanges, 1,800 bus stops, and 200 permanent shelters. The service caters for an average of 10,099,000 passenger trips (boardings) per annum.