Australian States Move Towards Free Public Transport

Bid to boost ridership post-pandemic and help commuters cope with cost of living

- Jonathan Pearlman

SYDNEY - Up till August 2024, Ms Seleneah More, a regular bus user in Brisbane, was spending about A$40 (S$33) a week on public transport.

Her partner spent the same amount on transport, while her 12-year-old son spent about A$20 a week.

The burden of this weekly expense was lifted on Aug 5, 2024, when the Queensland state government offered 50-cent fares for all rides on the state's buses, trains and light rail, regardless of the distance.

Ms More, a 49-year-old town planner, told The Straits Times her family now spends about A$20 a week on commutes. They save about A$47 when making trips to the Gold Coast, south of Brisbane, to visit her parents.

"For families, it helps not having to worry if your kids have enough money to get to and from where they are going," she said.

The Queensland scheme, which costs about A$300 million a year, was introduced as a six-month trial but was made permanent in February after it led to a big boost in public transport use and helped commuters cope with the cost of living.

Official data in February showed that train travel had increased by 19 per cent, bus use by 16 per cent, light rail by 28 per cent, and ferries by 43 per cent since the scheme began.

Other Australian states and territories have also been moving towards free travel in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic and the ensuing work-from-home phenomenon that caused a drop in public transport use.

In Australia's most populous state of New South Wales, public transport usage remains more than 20 per cent below levels in late 2019, though usage has been steadily increasing.