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Action for Public Transport (N.S.W.) Inc.

NEWS RELEASE: Beat the Train Fare Rise

posted Saturday 8 September 2007
Regular train travellers can save more than $100 if they act now and order yearly tickets before the expected rail fare rise is announced, according to the consumer group, Action for Public Transport (APT).

Spokesman for APT, Allan Miles, said that CityRail has asked for fare increases of 20 and 40 cents for suburban single trips, and increases up to $1 for inter-urban trips. "CityRail has also proposed increases of $2 in weekly TravelPass tickets and $2 or $3 in weekly rail tickets," Mr Miles said.

"Despite the protests of commuter, environmental and social welfare groups, a fare rise is quite likely," he said. "It may be announced around early October to take effect perhaps from the end of October".

But Mr Miles has a rescue plan for commuters. "If you order a season ticket before any fare rise is announced," he said, "you will get the whole period at the current price. For a yearly ticket, this could save you $100."

"But," he said, "you must order the ticket now, before any announcement is made. If you wait until a fare rise is notified, you will have to pay for most of the ticket at the new higher rate."

Mr Miles said that, even in the unlikely event of no fare rise, regular travellers would still be in front if they switched from weeklies to a season ticket. "You get 11 or 12 weeks free," he said.

Mr Miles gave examples of current ticket prices. Yearly tickets are 41 times the price of a weekly ticket.

St Leonards, Ashfield, Bondi Junction or Wolli Creek to Central weekly rail is $23 and yearly is $945.
Chatswood or Kingsgrove to Central - $26 and $1,068.
Epping or East Hills to Central - $32 and $1,314
Miranda or Hornsby to Central - $34 and $1,397
Penrith or Richmond to Central - $45 and $1,848
Wollongong to Central - $51 and $2,095

TravelPass weeklies for use on buses and ferries as well as trains are also likely to increase in price at the same time. "A yearly ticket is 40 times the cost of a weekly one," Mr Miles said. Current prices are:

Red TravelPass $33 weekly and $1,320 yearly.
Green TravelPass $41 and $1,640
Yellow TravelPass $45 and $1,800
Pink TravelPass $48 and $1,920
Purple TravelPass $55 and $2,200

Mr Miles said that although the initial outlay of one or two thousand dollars might seem a lot, the saving you get on a yearly ticket is far more than the interest you would get by leaving your money in the bank. "And," he said, "you don't have to face the Monday morning queues."

"A review of bus fares has also commenced," Mr Miles said, "and there is every chance that they will increase from January, so ordering a multi-mode yearly TravelPass now can save you heaps," he said.

"Increases in ferry fares are off the agenda while the Walker Inquiry continues," Mr Miles said, "but they may soon have their hand out for more, too. A yearly TravelPass at today's prices will avoid all these increases," he said.

"Some employers provide interest-free loans to staff to enable them to buy season tickets," Mr Miles said, "with repayments taken from regular salaries." Mr Miles suggested that employees ask their pay clerks about this.

Mr Miles said that rail tickets can be ordered covering any number of days between 30 and 365, while TravelPasses come in Quarterly or Yearly versions. "The longer the period, the greater the saving," he said. "Season tickets can be ordered on line through http://www.131500.info."

Contact: Allan Miles 9516-1906



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