$50 weekly public transport cap starts Monday

The $50 Opal weekly travel cap will take effect on Monday, saving tens of thousands of regular public transport users up to $686 a year.

Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the decision to slash the current cap by around 20 per cent will help to ease cost of living pressures for around 55,000 train, bus, ferry, metro and light rail customers.

“We want to make public transport more affordable and that is why we are lowering the cap,” Ms Berejiklian said.

“From Monday adults will pay no more than $50 a week and the concession cap will also be reduced from $31.60 to $25 a week.”

Regular customers on the new North West Metro will be among those to benefit from the lower cap, with an adult customer travelling to and from Tallawong Station and Central five days a week to save $563 a year.

Transport Minister Andrew Constance said the NSW Government has also rejected IPART’s recommendation to increase public transport fares by 4.2 per cent.

“Fares will only rise in line with inflation from Monday, meaning the rise will be 1.9 per cent or roughly 10 cents a week,” Mr Constance said.

“This means catching the train, bus, ferry, metro or light rail is still a much cheaper option than driving.”

Opal benefits already in place will remain, including the Weekly Travel Reward, the Opal Transfer Discount and the $2.50 daily cap for Gold Opal cards.

The NSW Liberals & Nationals Government has saved households more than $800 million over the last year through a raft of cost of living measures, including cheaper Green Slips, $100 Active and Creative Kids vouchers and Free Rego.

Example of yearly savings for regular commuters: