Greens NSW transport spokesperson Mehreen Faruqi says recently-announced changes to the Opal ticketing scheme by the NSW Government will turn people away from public transport.
NSW transport minister Andrew Constance last week responded to a review by the state’s Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal, accepting a number of recommendations and knocking back others.
One of the more controversial measures approved by Constance was the removal of free trips after the first eight in a week, and the granting of half-price trips instead.
Dr Faruqi, who represents the Greens in the NSW upper house, says the measure will drive down public transport use, by taking away an incentive for passengers to frequently use their Opal card to save.
“The government had the opportunity to take measures to really drive up public transport use and make the Opal card more effective for commuters,” Faruqi said on May 18.
“As usual, they have taken the easy road and ended up with these half-baked measures.
“The decision to remove the Weekly Travel Reward will only serve as a disincentive to use public transport, especially on weekends at a time when road congestion is increasing and public transport is underutilised.
“This is an incredibly short-sighted move from the government.”
Faruqi also criticised the addition of a $2 discount for travellers who change between transport modes (e.g. bus to train) on the same trip, saying the measure doesn’t go far enough.
IPART had initially suggested such trips be charged as a single trip, but had to shift its recommendation after Transport for NSW explained such a move would take too long to implement.
Faruqi says this isn’t good enough.
“The government has failed to seize a key opportunity to integrate fares as much as possible for people who have to use multiple modes of transport to reach their destination,” she said.
“A $2 rebate will mean some savings, but we shouldn’t be penalising people who make use of different modes of public transport.”