Paying the price: Jani Patokallio said he created the opalornot.com site to vent his disapproval with the Opal smartcard. "I realised the way I actually commute it would cost me like $10 more per week." Photo: Rachel Murdolo
More than half of all public transport trips plugged into a new online fare calculator were found to be more expensive using Sydney's Opal smartcard compared with paper-based tickets.
The comparisons on the www.opalornot.com site are not perfect; creator Jani Patokallio said he was still working on more exact estimates for multi tickets and bus journeys.
It would cost me like $10 more per week for the same commute - that's ridiculous.
But the results of the site reflects widespread dissatisfaction with the Opal fares policy introduced under Transport Minister Gladys Berejiklian, reflected in the fact that usage of the Opal card remains patchy.
The Opal travel card on the Neutral Bay ferry run.
Only five per cent of ferry customers are using the Opal card. Photo: Peter Rae
For instance, the most recent figures provided by the government show that just 5 per cent of ferry customers are using the Opal card, despite the card being available on all wharves since August.
The Opal is cheaper than individual ferry tickets, but it is more expensive than individual fares using a MyFerry TravelTen card. It is also more expensive than individual trips using a bus TravelTen, but cheaper than individual trips bought separately.
Mr Patokallio, a former travel publisher who now works in IT, said he created the site to vent his disappointment with the Opal card.
Using a train and a ferry within an hour can be counted as just one journey, hampering cost savings. Photo: Dallas Kilponen
"I was really looking forward to the Opal," said Mr Patokallio, whose regular commute is a ferry between Abbotsford and Darling Harbour.
"It was like 'hey cool, I can finally use a smartcard instead of buying all these silly paper tickets'. And then I realised the way I actually commute it would cost me like $10 more per week for the same commute - that's ridiculous."
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/takeup-of-opal-card-low-as-site-sh…
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