WE HAVE HAD TWO WEEKENDS OF FREE PUBLIC TRANSPORT IN VICTORIA: WHY NOT MAKE IT PERMANENT?

The Socialist Bulletin Staff - 10/12/2025

IN Victoria, we have just ended the second weekend of free public transport across the state, to celebrate the opening of the Metro Tunnel. Fares do not pay for even a small slice of transport. Why do we still have to pay fares five days a week (or, seven days a week after February)?

The operation of our fare system, whether it be Myki in most of the state, or paper tickets outside the Myki zone, in almost every situation, costs more than the revenue gained from fare collection. The only people that profit from Myki's existence are the private operators of the network, who take a small cut, and Conduent, the American company that now runs the Myki network.

Despite the low cost of travel in Victoria, it can still be prohibitive for some members of our community, as has been made evident by the numbers of people that fare evade in our state - fewer than one in three people touch on on buses, according to documents released to the State Parliament back in September.

In Victoria since 2021, fares in the metropolitan area have risen an unjustifiable 20%, up to $5.50 (full fare) and $2.75 (concession) for just a two-hour trip. When compared to other states, our network is hopelessly expensive. Queensland, the conservative heartland that currently has a far-right Liberal National Party government in power, has 50c public transport fares.

Yes, fare collection is useful for one thing: understanding ridership, and finding out which routes and lines need improvements. To collect this data, however, you shouldn't need to charge people money. It would be more beneficial, for the state's bottom line, for commuter access, and to drive people away from cars, if people simply pressed a button to open the fare gates, indicating that they are entering, and using the network. This would allow the government to continue to collect ridership data, while also getting more people out of their cars, and making public transport more accessible.