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

Allan Miles, spokesman for Action for Public Transport, said that the new fares for 2010 released by the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) today were unremarkable. "They were approved years ago," Mr Miles said, 'in the four-year pricing path for trains approved in 2008 and for buses approved in 2009."

"Because fares were frozen for last year," Mr Miles said, "today's increases may seem a little harsh because they are a double dose."

"What is lacking from the report" Mr Miles said, "and lacking from IPART's and from the government's understanding of passenger needs, is any attempt to provide a handy and cheap all-day general purpose ticket."

Mr Miles said that when MyZone was established in April 2010, the only all-day ticket for full-fare passengers was set at $20, covering just about everywhere between Nowra, Goulburn, Lithgow and Newcastle. "That was great for tourists," he said, "but robbed the local traveller of any means of getting around on a mixture of trains and buses without having to buy a separate ticket on each one."

"The government's response to this need," Mr Miles said, "is the assurance that the new smart-card ticket will solve everything." "This is no comfort at all," he said.

"We need a $10 all-day, all-mode ticket for the Sydney suburban area, and we need it now," Mr Miles said, "not at the end of the rainbow."

"Another item that is missing from today's news," Mr Miles said, "is any hint of whether the ferry fares will increase or not." Mr Miles said that Sydney Ferries fares last increased in January 2007, and an increase is well overdue."

Contact: Allan Miles 9516-1906