Add tram and train to your older person's travel pass

If you have a TfGM-issued older person's travel pass, to benefit from unlimited off-peak travel on trams and trains in Greater Manchester you need to pay an annual £10 fee.

This does not affect your entitlement to free, off-peak bus travel across England and, if you only use buses, you can choose not to pay to add tram and train.

The £10 charge does not apply to concessionary passes for disabled people.

How to add tram and train to your pass

You’ll be covered for a full year from the date you pay. After this you should renew when you next need to travel by tram or train.

You can pay:

online.
on a Bee Network bus.
by taking your concessionary travel pass into an Information and Ticket Office.
in your local PayPoint store - look for the 'P' logo.

Online

To buy online, you will need to link your concessionary pass to a Bee Card account.

Once you have paid online, please allow 24 hours for the transaction to complete. After this you will need to touch-in with your concessionary pass at a Metrolink smart reader within 14 days, at any tram stop, and your pass will be updated to show you have paid to add tram and train.

On a Bee Network bus

When you're on a Bee Network bus, ask the driver to add tram and train to your concessionary travel pass. You must be on a Bee Network bus to purchase.

In-store

If you need your pass for travelling by train and won’t be able to visit a Metrolink stop first, we suggest you buy from a PayPoint or an Information and Ticket Office.

To pay, take your concessionary pass into:

your local PayPoint store - look for the 'P' logo

PayPoint Logo

an Information and Ticket Office and ask to pay to 'add tram and train'
in store, ask to pay to 'add tram and train'(select a date within the next 7 days)
hand the retailer your concessionary pass along with £10 payment
they will complete the transaction and hand back your pass with 'add tram and train' loaded onto it, along with your receipt
now you are ready to travel off-peak on trams and trains in Greater Manchester

When your concessionary pass expires

If you’ve paid to add tram and train for a year and your concessionary pass expires, or you lose it, and are sent a new one before the end of that year, your tram and train add on will be transferred automatically and ready to use.

If you return your concessionary pass or no longer use it, the £10 charge to add tram and train is not refundable.

On trams (Metrolink)

Tap in at the start and tap out at the end of every journey you make, using the yellow smart readers on tram stops.

The smart readers on tram stops now accept contactless cards and devices for travel. Please move your concessionary pass away from your payment cards, when you use a smart reader. For example, if you keep your pass in a wallet or purse, remove it before you tap in and tap out. This will make sure you’re not charged on a contactless card you didn’t intend to use.

On trains (within Greater Manchester)

Have your smart card available for the train guard to check and use it to tap on the reader as you go through a ticket gate at a rail station.

During a ticket check, the official will simply scan your concessionary pass to confirm that it is valid for the journey you’re making and can see if you’ve paid to add tram and train or added another valid ticket.

If you don't have a valid pass or ticket, you risk a penalty or penalty fare.

If you lose your pass there is a £10 charge for replacing a lost, stolen or damaged card.

If you’ve paid to add tram and train for a year, and replace your concessionary pass within 12 months, the remainder of the product will be transferred automatically to your replacement card.

in person at a PayPoint store or TfGM Travelshop – take in your pass and the agent can check your account for you
by phone on 0161 244 1000 – have your pass to hand, as the agent will need the unique card number to check your account for you
if you paid online log in to your account, where you can check all your details

If you have a disabled concessionary pass, you do not need to pay £10 to add tram and train.

Disabled concessionary pass holders continue to get free, off-peak travel on local bus services and on trams and trains in Greater Manchester; and can buy half-price tram (Metrolink) tickets at other times.

Disabled Plus concessionary pass holders continue to get free travel at any time on local buses, trams and trains in Greater Manchester

visit a TfGM Travelshop
complete an online contact form
call us on 0161 244 1000 (7am to 8pm Monday to Friday and 8am to 8pm at weekends and public holidays).

How to add tram and train to a TfGM pension-age concessionary pass

You can take payment and add tram and train to a concessionary pass, in the same way as you add other travel tickets to smart cards.

Step 1: Place the concessionary pass on the card reader
Step 2: The display will show ‘add tram and train’ as one of the options – select this
Step 3: Select the customer’s preferred start date (they can select a date within the next 7 days)
Step 4: The display will show that £10 is due - leave the card on the reader while you take payment
Step 5: Once the transaction is complete, press OK
Step 6: The pass will be updated, and a receipt will be issued for the customer

The receipt shows the date that the £10 payment expires, and it also shows the expiry date of the concessionary pass itself.

Note: The concessionary pass may expire before the annual charge does but any remaining time can be transferred to the customer’s new pass. They will just need to touch-in at a Metrolink smart reader, on any tram stop, and the new pass will be updated.

You can now also buy or collect on a Bee Network bus.

How to check the expiry date

A customer may ask you to check their concessionary pass for the expiry date of their £10 payment.

Step 1: Place the concessionary pass on the card reader
Step 2: Select the ‘enquiry’ option at the bottom right of the screen
Step 3. On the next screen, press ‘next’ and you get the option to print a receipt
Step 4: Print the receipt, which will show the expiry date of the £10 to add tram and train

For help:

PayPoint Website or by email atcontactus@paypoint.com