MEDIA RELEASE
29 March 2026
Metro Tasmania’s Metro Tas App continues to gain recognition, with a series of state, national and global awards celebrating both its customer‑focused design and the collaborative delivery of real‑time bus tracking.
In June 2025, Metro and project partners, Ionata Digital, Loop Foundry, the Tasmanian Department of State Growth and Mattersoft received the Best ICT Initiative or Industry Collaboration award at the 2025 TasICT Excellence Awards, recognising the collaborative approach to delivering real‑time tracking in the Metro Tas app.
That success was followed by two awards at the BETTER FUTURE Melbourne Design Awards 2025, where the app received:
- Gold — Digital – Government Services
- Silver — Digital – Expanded Service or Application
The project then progressed to the BETTER FUTURE Australian Design Awards 2026, receiving two Gold awards at a national level:
- Gold — Digital – Government Services
- Gold — Digital — Expanded Service or Application
Most recently, the Metro Tas app has received global recognition at the BETTER FUTURE World Design Awards 2026, again taking out two Gold awards:
- Gold — Digital – Government Services
- Gold — Digital – Expanded Service or Application
The project was also recognised as a Curated Nomination and included in the Chairman’s selection.
Metro Tasmania CEO Jessica Paton said the recognition reflected the practical value the app delivered for customers every day.
“These awards recognise the strong focus on customers that sits behind the Metro Tas app,” Ms Paton said.
“Real‑time tracking gives people greater certainty when they travel, helping them plan their journeys with more confidence.”
The upgraded Metro Tas app introduced real‑time tracking across Metro’s general access services in Hobart, Launceston and Burnie, allowing customers to see live bus locations, predicted arrival times and journey planning in one place.
More than 30,000 Tasmanians now use the Metro Tas app each month, reflecting strong customer uptake since the introduction of real‑time tracking in February 2025.
Ms Paton said Metro continued to refine and improve the app based on customer feedback.
“We’re seeing strong engagement from customers, and we’re committed to continuous improvement,” she said.
“Metro works closely with the Department of State Growth, which manages the real‑time data that underpins the system, to make improvements wherever possible within that framework.”
Metro acknowledged the cross‑agency and industry collaboration behind the project, including delivery partners Ionata Digital, Loop Foundry, the Department of State Growth and Mattersoft.
Metro Tas App awards
| TasICT Excellence Awards 2025 | Best ICT Initiative or Industry Collaboration |
| BETTER FUTURE Melbourne Design Awards 2025 | Gold — Digital – Government Services |
| Silver — Digital – Expanded Service or Application | |
| BETTER FUTURE Australian Design Awards 2026 | Gold — Digital – Government Services |
| Gold — Digital — Expanded Service or Application | |
| BETTER FUTURE World Design Awards 2026 | Gold — Digital – Government Services (Curated Nomination: Chairman’s selection) |
| Gold — Digital – Expanded Service or Application (Curated Nomination: Chairman’s selection) |