This was posted 2 years 8 months 26 days ago, and might be an out-dated deal.

Related
  • expired

[NSW] Free Travel on Sydney Public Transport (4am 14 April to 4am 26 April) - Opal or Contactless Credit/Debit Card Required

4116
[NSW] Free Travel on Sydney Public Transport (4am 14 April to 4am 26 April) - Opal or Contactless Credit/Debit Card Required
Go to Deal
hotmustardsauce on 27/03/2022 - 07:42 transportnsw.info (4718 clicks)
Last edited 16/04/2022 - 20:36 by 6 other users

Commuters will travel for free across Sydney’s entire public transport network for 12 consecutive days during the Easter holidays as the government seeks to spur a return to city centres and make amends for widespread disruption.

When will free fares start and end?
Free fares will apply from 4am on Thursday 14 April 2022 to 3.59am on Tuesday 26 April 2022, immediately following Anzac Day.

Which services will be free?
Fare free period covers all Opal network services in Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, the Hunter and the Illawarra, and includes metro, train, bus, ferry and light rail services.

Note: Sydney Ferries services (F1-F9), Newcastle Ferries, Manly Fast Ferry and the NRMA electric ferry between King Street Wharf and Pyrmont Bay Wharf will be free during the fare free period. Other ferry services (including the F10) will continue to charge as usual.

Terms and conditions: To take advantage of free public transport travel for 12 days offer you must tap on and tap off with a valid Opal card with a positive balance or an American Express, Mastercard or Visa card. Offer excludes On Demand, Single Trip Tickets and Sydney Airport Line station access fees. A $1 pre-authorisation charge will appear on participating credit or debit cards and will be reversed at the end of the day.

Travel Bus Fare Ferry Public Transport Train Fare

Related Stores

Transport for NSW
Transport for NSW

closed Comments

    • Iwantthatbargain on 27/03/2022 - 19:18

      No, it’s till 4 am on 26th Apr, so basically ending on 25th for most of us unless you complete your travel before 4 am

    • bugsucher on 27/03/2022 - 22:42
      +1

      It 's 4am 14 April to 4am 26 April, so only 12 days sharp (288 hours).

    • Eeples on 27/03/2022 - 23:05
      -1

      No, it's 11 days, 23 hours and 59 mins.

  • Freeskater on 27/03/2022 - 08:31
    +2

    Worthwhile to increase ventilation on all trains and buses so this goes safe way.

  • treebytheriver on 27/03/2022 - 08:32

    I doubt this includes the station access fee at the airport stations right? No info about that in the article.

    • Ghogger on 27/03/2022 - 08:38
      +2

      Highly doubt it, it’s not a ‘fare’ but rather a ‘fee’

      • orangetrain on 27/03/2022 - 10:23
        +1

        It's practically a toll

    • bugsucher on 27/03/2022 - 22:45
      +1

      "The free travel will include trains, buses and ferries, but not private ferries, the airport line and Point to Point bus service."

  • popsiee on 27/03/2022 - 08:33
    +4

    Nice use of tax payers money :)
    Well player NSW Govt .

  • Ghogger on 27/03/2022 - 08:37
    +2

    Looking forward to this, will be utilising the ferries!

    • ferguson on 27/03/2022 - 16:55
      +3

      A bit like we used to be able to every Sunday for years for only a couple of dollars …until the same government took that Opal benefit away from us!

  • [Deactivated] on 27/03/2022 - 08:39
    +33

    Say thanks to the Transport Workers Union NSW for this, not the NSW Government

    • kamelataturd on 27/03/2022 - 08:47
      -5

      are the transport workers forgoing their salary to deliver these services?

      • ben1680 on 27/03/2022 - 09:42
        +10

        Are NSW Goverment paying this service from their own pocket/salary?

        We should say thanks to either ourself or Transport Workers Union NSW, as all the Government do is talk and spin the narratives for their own benefits especially around election time…

    • BoundedRationality on 27/03/2022 - 09:42
      +10

      ^ This.

      No matter what the Govt spin machine will say, free travel days for commuters was a union idea.

      • kamelataturd on 27/03/2022 - 10:00
        -2

        No matter what the govt spin machine say, free travel days are paid for by tax payers. Transport workers are continuing to get paid to do their job. If they forego their salary over this period then I'll give them gratitude. Otherwise they are just doing their job that they are paid for. Nothing more, nothing less.

        Even if it was the union idea - wow so very gracious of them to give away other people's money

        • BoundedRationality on 27/03/2022 - 10:27
          +8

          You're 100% correct, they're just looking to do their jobs and get paid to do so, but no, they don't care about your gratitude one bit.

          Do you consider hospitals to be "giving away other people's money"? How about the police? Fire services? The roads you drive on? No? Then get out of your ideological echo chamber and stop dumping on people trying to protect their employment conditions.

          And if you really want to get angry about "giving away other people's money", go do a bit of research into the allocation of NSW govt funding into marginal seats before the last state election, that should really make your blood boil if you truly care about government largesse.

          • kamelataturd on 27/03/2022 - 14:42
            -1

            @BoundedRationality: nice strawman - because i clearly stated hospital services, police and fire services are not paid for by tax dollars.

  • p0tat0 on 27/03/2022 - 08:43
    +8

    Does this include trains to the airport?

    • [Deactivated] on 27/03/2022 - 09:02

      LoL

    • Neoika on 27/03/2022 - 09:19

      Yes, only book a return flight during the period.

    • st1ng on 27/03/2022 - 20:43
      +1

      It excludes trains on the airport line and private ferries, as they are not operated by TfNSW. I assume that includes Green Square, Mascot and the two airport stations. (source: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-27/sydney-commuters-free…)

      • peterpeterpumpkin on 14/04/2022 - 08:21

        The State Government has covered the fees at Mascot and Green Square since 2011. It would be weird for them to treat it as the airport line just for this period.

  • Trekky on 27/03/2022 - 08:44

    Thanks Op. I plan on going somewhere everyday!!

  • aiyoyo on 27/03/2022 - 09:05

    Nice

    • WreckTangle on 27/03/2022 - 09:47
      +18

      Give me Dan over Perrotet day

      • Gavman on 27/03/2022 - 09:51
        -6

        You can have him for a packet of twisties.

        • try2bhelpful on 27/03/2022 - 10:09
          +2

          You can’t give Guy away; the LNP has tried it a couple of times.

    • try2bhelpful on 27/03/2022 - 09:54
      +3

      I’m sure you feel much better now you’ve got that off your chest. However, you might want to look at the free tram travel we have in the CBD. I’m in Sydney, at the moment, and I have to touch on for all travel in the CBD. Also, some bright spark, up here, decided to not put the “touch on” devices in the trams. You miss your tram whilst you are waiting in the queue to get to the touch on machine.

      However, the best thing Dan has going for him is the, woeful, opposition. They just can’t seem to help themselves. In the last two days we’ve had the segregationist from Brighton and the abusive drunk who thinks he is the victim.

    • smartazz104 on 27/03/2022 - 10:06

      Still waiting for new talking points from the HS?

  • laura85 on 27/03/2022 - 09:34
    +10

    They should credit anyone's opal account that was affected by the disruptions if they truly want to make amends.

  • shortgum on 27/03/2022 - 09:37

    trains only or bus ferry light rail also?

    • recession1 on 27/03/2022 - 09:41
      +1

      “The fare-free days cover all Opal network services in Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, the Hunter and the Illawarra. It includes train, bus, light rail and ferry services.”

  • ShoeyAU on 27/03/2022 - 09:40
    +1

    "The fare-free days cover all Opal network services in Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, the Hunter and the Illawarra. It includes train, bus, light rail and ferry services."

  • naruto128 on 27/03/2022 - 09:43
    +5

    Great, packed ferries to Manly and trains to Blue Mountains. Every trip potentially a super spreader event.

      • cashless on 27/03/2022 - 11:00
        +8

        I don’t think 1.72 million (total cases in NSW to date) is “most people”.
        So naruto128 makes a valid point. Anyone (like you) who thinks this disease is over is only kidding themselves.
        Not scaremongering.

  • RogerLoger on 27/03/2022 - 09:44
    +4

    There is no media release about this. Until details are published it is political static.
    https://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/news-and-events/media-relea…

    Even when a media release is made, they may be misleading. Quote from
    https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/news/Pages/20211223_01.aspx
    "The NSW Government will also procure Rapid-Antigen Test kits and make them available for free to people across the State"
    They are not free for everybody.

  • PainToad on 27/03/2022 - 09:45
    +9

    spur a return to city centres

    Yeah nah.

    CBDs are dead. Accept it.

    • Gavman on 27/03/2022 - 09:55
      +1

      True. Los Angeles CBD been dead for decades

      • try2bhelpful on 27/03/2022 - 09:56
        -2

        LA doesn’t, really, have a CBD. It is a bunch of suburbs looking for a centre. San Francisco does have a CBD.

        • Gavman on 27/03/2022 - 09:58
          +3

          They do. It’s called downtown LA. The fact ppl think they don’t have one is case/point itself to how dead it is.

          • try2bhelpful on 27/03/2022 - 10:13

            @Gavman: LA is a car driven city. I think that is a lot of their problem. San Francisco has a good public transport system and, despite the hills, is quite walkable.

          • perfectlydark on 27/03/2022 - 13:57
            +2

            @Gavman: Also if you ever go to LA and assume staying in the 'CBD' seems like a good idea…
            dont.

            • try2bhelpful on 30/03/2022 - 11:38
              +1

              @perfectlydark: Dat’s the truth. However, if they say they are staying at LA I would just say “don’t”.

    • try2bhelpful on 27/03/2022 - 10:05

      It is an interesting thought. Whether they are CBDs, or not, they do tend to be the entertainment and cultural hubs in the cities. In Melbourne it, also, tends to be the sporting hub. It will be interesting to see how the cities pan out as tourism increases again. Places that can pivot to the tourists might have less on an issue if the business footprint gets smaller. Me, I live in Fitzroy and the place is jumping in the latter half of the week and weekend. Frankly, I’m not cool enough to live in Fitzroy; but I got in when housing wasn’t crippling to buy and it was less cool.

    • FutureTech on 27/03/2022 - 10:21

      Have you seen the crowd yesterday

    • jrowls on 27/03/2022 - 10:25
      +5

      yep. my office is back to three days a week and due to the cost of my opal fare and increased cost of living there's no way I'm buying lunch or coffees. if I didn't have to commute I'd swap an opal fare for a coffee / banana bread on my street though.

  • WreckTangle on 27/03/2022 - 09:45
    +1

    Its in the school holidays, but i saw many kids stuck at platforms on train shutdown days. Wheres their compensation? Its not right - this government needs to go.

  • try2bhelpful on 27/03/2022 - 09:48
    +13

    The shutout was such an own goal by the Government. The Transport Minister wasn’t in the State and he said he wouldn’t have taken the phone call anyway. WTF? That is his job. The unions ran rings around them because the people in charge don’t understand the network or what they were agreeing to.

    Then they said they would offer free transport to compensate and the unions have pushed them to do it.

    Most of the dispute appears to be about safety on the network. I would find the train driver job, very, stressful. Apart from the day to day of dealing with people who don’t understand what “door closing” means, unfortunately, there are people who, deliberately, step in front of trains to suicide.

    • Eeples on 27/03/2022 - 10:28
      +5

      Morrison is yet to retract his statement that it was a strike.

  • life is suffering on 27/03/2022 - 10:01
    +4

    Please don't this think it's free.

    The government still has to pay the company the runs Opal card and other operators. Tax dollars

    • gimli on 27/03/2022 - 10:22
      +1

      Username checks out

      • life is suffering on 27/03/2022 - 11:52

        :)

        • htc on 27/03/2022 - 12:22

          I wonder if there is a username on this site with the name life is a gift etc

          • life is suffering on 27/03/2022 - 14:44

            @htc: Life is suffering is not negative or cynical in any way. It's actually quite empowering.

            Life is suffering means there will be disappointments sadness and pain. This is a fact. If you accept this fact then life will be easy to live.

            • htc on 27/03/2022 - 17:55

              @life is suffering: Not disputing life is or can be difficult. Simplying just curious if there is another username with an antithesis username. Agree with the sooner you accept life can be challenging and has up and down, the sooner you will take responsibility for your action. This is where most depression comes from.

  • fozzie on 27/03/2022 - 10:08
    +4

    Mmm let the omicron subvariant ba.2 spread even more quickly

    • Ugly on 27/03/2022 - 11:13
      -4

      If you’re that worried, go hide in your basement.

  • jrowls on 27/03/2022 - 10:27
    +7

    PUBLIC transport should be free every day. That's how you enable people to get around and encourage flexibility and an agile workforce. Toll roads and train tickets only stimy the economy and innovation. Not to mention, for people on median or above salary, opal fare and tolls are a pain in the ass and an additional weekly expense, for poorer folks they are either impossible or make them far closer to serious trouble than they would otherwise be.

    What's the government for if not to enable the smooth and equitable functioning of society?

    • Mr Bob Dobalina on 27/03/2022 - 10:30

      It should be free but only in the CBD.

      • jrowls on 27/03/2022 - 10:39

        How does that work for all the commuters who can't live anywhere near the CBD? Sounds like a boondoggle that only benefits those who can afford a Surry Hills or Elizabeth Bay.

    • Vote for Pedro on 27/03/2022 - 11:07
      +3

      There is a reason its not free. If it was free, patronage would skyrocket beyond breaking point. Thats why there’s a nominal cost. Your fare covers roughly 30% of the total cost of providing public transport.

      I agree with the concept but with the current pathetic investment in public transport in preference of toll roads (to line the pockets of big business monopolies), it would collapse fairly quickly

      • jrowls on 27/03/2022 - 11:18
        +3

        I seriously don't think that there is a significant amount of people who don't catch public transport because of the price right now. Most people who catch public transport use it because it's a necessity. It's price-inelastic.

        I am sure there would be an increase but I don't think it would be huge. Making it free would just put more money into the economy - poor people spend every penny, too, on stuff that the government gets tax back on. I would love to see an economic breakdown of it all. I have had a good geez at some tables by the ABS (I think… can't remember, it was for work a while back) that related to flow-on from salaries paid in various jobs. i.e. every dollar paid in a job in x field related meant $y spend in all these other fields.

        Obviously I can't make a call on it without seeing the numbers but I strongly believe that it would not be an economic black hole - slightly higher taxes would cover it and I reckon a lot would be recouped. It might not break even but I would still believe in it as sound government policy.

        • Vote for Pedro on 27/03/2022 - 11:27
          +3

          I agree with everything you say about it being free.

          I currently drive to and from work as the net difference in cost is $15 a week. If public transport was free, the difference would be circa $80 a week. Id catch public transport.

          That’s the issue. It would collapse the system.

          • jrowls on 27/03/2022 - 11:38
            -1

            @Vote for Pedro: I think you are vastly in the minority there. I take it your commute is not between a 'burb and major CBD? Because if it is I have absolutely no idea how you're affording parking for similar to the transit price!

            The only people I know who drive to the CBD are tradies working there who have to and very well-off folks who won't catch public transport anyway. Also motorbike/scooter people. If we aren't talking about 'burb—>CBD trips then your point is fair, our transport system is designed as a hub and spoke system which means that the services that don't involve the CBDs aren't really prioritised and can be pretty atrocious.

            • Vote for Pedro on 27/03/2022 - 11:43
              +2

              @jrowls: Ok - i guess all those non tradie cars clogging up the roads in to the city are just my imagination

              • jrowls on 27/03/2022 - 12:28
                -1

                @Vote for Pedro: Lots of trips are not ending in the city though, they are through it. I’m talking purely about trips that end in the CBD. From my guesstimating of walking though the CBD at peak hour regularly I’d say maybe 1 in 4 cars is actually ending in the CBD, not including trucks

                I’ll find some trip to work data from ABS and report back. What’s the easiest way to share an image here?

                • Vote for Pedro on 27/03/2022 - 12:42
                  -1

                  @jrowls: What you need to do is look at employment centres such as Chatswood, North Sydney, Macquarie Park, Parramatta and the educational centres such as Camperdown, Randwick, North Ryde, Campbelltown in addition to trips in to the city. Then you need to consider the share between public transport and private vehicles.

                  Then finally you need to guesstimate the proportion that would switch if public transport were free.

                  Remember, the network is basically approaching capacity now with 1 million daily journeys on trains only (which is only 500,000 individuals making an inbound and outbound trip). So even if it was only a 10% increase, it’s an extra 50,000 people.

                  Public transport planning is a complex process that can’t be resolved by posting an out of context abs chart. It’s a holistic view of town planning, economics, price points, capacity and many other factors. Thats even before you consider political influence.

                  Don’t misunderstand. I too believe it should be free. But I understand why it isn’t

      • orangetrain on 27/03/2022 - 15:11
        +1

        Patronage would skyrocket beyond breaking point? Why have we never heard of this when public transport was free before? Because it's a scaremongering lie.

        Do you think people are suddenly compelled to get on a train or bus and just sit there all day? No, they go to shops. They do touristy things. Otherwise these people are at home, sending money to overseas companies for services such as Netflix or Reddit, etc.

        Public transport is heavily subsidised already. Why not make it free for all without paying for extra costs such as security guards who may cripple people for refusing to show their ticket?

        • jrowls on 27/03/2022 - 15:39
          +1

          100%. I would love to see the numbers for how much it costs to manage the whole payment and enforcement system, including the software and hardware and staffing, vs how much it would be to eliminate all that.

        • Vote for Pedro on 27/03/2022 - 16:49

          Your naivety is cute.

          Here’s my personal example. Currently costs me circa $80 a week to drive to and from work. My public transport fare would be around $50. My extra cost is $1440 per annum assuming work of 48 weeks a year.

          If public transport was free, my extra cost to drive would be $3840 per annum.

          I would definitely switch on those figures.

          But lets say I’m an edge case and my example is extreme and the average savings would be $2000 per year. Do you think no one would switch or would maybe 10-20% switch.

          On a $75000 after tax income, a $2000 savings is the equivalent of a 2.7% pay rise (after tax)

          • orangetrain on 27/03/2022 - 18:17

            @Vote for Pedro: Let's see if the system gets overwhelmed on any of those free days then!

            • Vote for Pedro on 27/03/2022 - 18:24

              @orangetrain: A couple of things. First, school holidays, so patronage is down anyway. Second, two weeks is unlikely to change habits. It’s a fool’s comparison.

              I certainly won’t be using it. The closest comparison was the $2.50 Sunday Funday fare which led to massive overcrowding, particularly on the ferries.

              Again, difficult comparison because thats more a leisure commute rather than work commute.

            • Vote for Pedro on 29/03/2022 - 08:41

              @orangetrain: Here’s something from IPART that might interest you https://www.ipart.nsw.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/i…

              • orangetrain on 29/03/2022 - 09:15

                @Vote for Pedro: Thanks, a good read. They missed the economic benefits though. I hope they do more studies.

        • spamus on 27/03/2022 - 18:57

          Despite being heavily subsidised, fares still make up several billion dollars in funding for public transport. Even if we had the money to make it free, it'd make more sense to use those funds to improve services instead.

  • Vote for Pedro on 27/03/2022 - 10:52
    +9

    Terrible deal. Government screws things up then gives you ‘free stuff’ with your money.

    Make no mistake, you are paying for this one way or another. Cynical attempt to buy your vote.

    • gimli on 27/03/2022 - 11:34
      +4

      Whilst I agree with you that we pay for it one way or another.
      For people planning a trip for the holidays free transport makes exploring much more appealing.

      Up to $16/day saving is pretty awesome deal.

      • fusion17 on 27/03/2022 - 12:06
        +1

        But many of the people actually affected get nothing unless they force themselves to use the train during that period.

        I used my opal card during the multiple failures recently, paying full price for part or no service. Give me some credit back instead. Surely that's a good use of the technology.

      • htc on 27/03/2022 - 12:23
        +4

        Great for the economy, when you subtract the cost of travel, it will entice more people to travel and spend more on shops. There used to be a funday sunday for $2.50.

  • mecind on 27/03/2022 - 11:25

    Hope there won't be any strike during that time

    • orangetrain on 27/03/2022 - 18:14
      +3

      Or LNP shutting trains down to blame unions..

  • Sweet3st on 27/03/2022 - 11:32
    +1

    I have a South Coast holiday lined up for part of this period. I’d prefer to pay full fare than have the trains packed to the rafters ☹️

  • omblygombly on 27/03/2022 - 11:35

    Free ferry rides sounds great to me.

    • Neoika on 27/03/2022 - 15:49

      Make sure that a capsize does not occur.

  • p1owz0r on 27/03/2022 - 11:46

    Great, another shit show of a comments section allowed to flourish by hands off mods.

  • Drakesy on 27/03/2022 - 12:00
    +1

    Tell me there's an election coming up without telling me…

    People don't want to return to the office because
    1. It's less flexible
    2. There's a greater likelihood of getting sick
    3. No one actually likes to be micromanaged in person

    The only ones that do are those that hate their other half/at home life and need an excuse to leave

  • yummycoot on 27/03/2022 - 12:06

    that's great, just in time for my holiday

  • WK1991 on 27/03/2022 - 12:15

    Does it count if you travel from outside of greater Sydney on a train and tap off at Central?

  • StonedWizard on 27/03/2022 - 12:18
    +2

    The issue I have with certain parts of Sydney public transport is the cost is higher than other states. But also, how unreliable it is. They've recently privatised the bus provider around me and buses are regularly cancelled or running 10+ minutes late.

    How can you expect people to go into the city, when there isn't reliable services. It's bad for business and puts my job at risk, when I don't know how reliably I can get to work.

    • orangetrain on 27/03/2022 - 18:15

      It's a free market, why don't you run your own buses now that there's no more government monopoly /s

      • StonedWizard on 27/03/2022 - 20:33
        +2

        @Orangetrain - Because I pay tax to subsidise an ineffective and expensive transport network?

        The point was, if people can’t get into the city. Then how is there any appeal in going there?

  • TimtamTinTin on 27/03/2022 - 12:28

    Would love to see if this is nationwide

  • nomadspartan on 27/03/2022 - 12:31
    +1

    Why were the Unions even fighting for free travel days for the public? Seems like a waste of money. I understand if they're fighting for their work conditions, fair enough; but why were they demanding for a free travel period for everyone?

  • kev98 on 27/03/2022 - 12:45
    +3

    As most other commenters have said, I would be happy for them to charge normal fares / offpeak fairs. Would rather they give the train workers a decent pay rise as I know David Elliot has no qualms about giving himself one.

  • elvislj on 27/03/2022 - 13:01

    Can someone educate me a bit please.

    Firstly it's about the train staff's welfare isn't it? but then why give us free travel instead of giving the money to the workers?

    Also shouldn't the pay-rise adjusted to inflation be applied to everyone or just those in the public sectors? I am in architecture for 10 years. the wage stay pretty much same.. I don't think the bosses in private business would give payrise every year to match inflation.

Login or Join to leave a comment
Login Join