Our Letter to the Transport Minister's Media Person

We're less than 4 weeks from the big zone and fare changes that were implemented within days of the issue of a report from the Fare Review Taskforce back in June. At this stage we have a low resolution regional zone map, a fare structure for the new zone arrangements, and a Fairer Fares Community Engagement Report. It seems this government made zero effort to share the Fairer Fares Community Engagement Report with the community it apparently engaged with. 

In frustration at the constant obfuscation at every level of the Translink machine, and with serious concerns about what will happen come January 1st, 2017 we have approached the media person for transport minister Stirling Hinchcliffe. Since we are expecting that Stirling Hinchcliffe's media person will make every effort to not give us satisfactory answers to our questions we've decided to post our communication here. 


Sent to: Darren Roberts - Media Person for Queensland Transport Minister, Stirling Hinchcliffe, 09/12/16

Hello Darren,

I'm following up from our phone call of today at 1.30pm. I'm glad you have given me your personal undertaking that you will respond to my questions in writing in a timely fashion. I would urge that you make the responses fulsome and as detailed as possible. I would also urge that you adhere to the time frame that I will provide in this email.

Time frame: By close of business Monday December 12, 2016 I would like answers to each of my 7 questions provided in written form, most preferably in an email.

Here are my 7 questions.

1. What date did the Translink Division/Queensland government/Queensland Department of Transport or any other relevant entity publish the Fairer Fares Community Engagement Report to the web page at this URL: https://haveyoursay.translink.com.au/seq-fare-review

2. What was the communications strategy around the release of the Fairer Fares Community Engagement Report? (I would ask that the minister answer this question while being mindful that the social media record shows little to no evidence of any attempt to disseminate or share the Fairer Fares Community Engagement Report. Further I would remind the minister that the Fairer Fares Community Engagement Report has not been assigned a URL and does not exist on it's own web page, but rather it is a download only document.)

3. Why does the PDF version of the Fairer Fares Community Engagement Report (the only version available to the public) contain extremely limited metadata other than a creation date of 02/09/2016 making the document virtually invisible to internet searches?

4. Why has the transport minister Stirling Hinchcliffe made no formal or informal statements regarding the Fairer Fares Community Engagement Report? (Please be mindful of previous commitments have been made in writing by Stirling Hinchcliffe wherein he committed to an "extensive community consultation") http://statements.qld.gov.au/Statement/2016/2/4/statement-on-the-independent-fare-review

5. When will Translink/Stirling Hinchcliffe be providing information to the South East Queensland public about the changes initiated through the fare review including but not limited to: concession fare arrangements for low income healthcare card holders, detailed zone boundary information (the current map titled 'Proposed 8 zone map' lacks appropriate detail), and any relevant changes/circumstances/consideration arising from from implementation of actions initiated as a response to the SEQ Review Taskforce Recommendations Report?

6. Is the transport minister prepared to make a detailed statement in writing explaining how his government made every attempt to satisfy the Terms of Reference for the Fare Review Taskforce? I would ask that the minister, in formulating his response, be mindful of this statement in the Terms of Reference document outlining the process for community consultation:

"The taskforce will develop a detailed options paper for public consultation.
Following on from public consultation recommendations will be submitted to government."

7. Why was the September 2016 performance snapshot only published yesterday 08/12/16 and why is the October snapshot still unpublished? (it has been customary to publish each snapshot a month after the relevant service period). If indeed the minister has an explanation for not publishing performance data in a timely manner, would the minister provide that explanation to me?

Regards

Michael Swifte

Page Manager - The Translink Ripoff


EDIT: On December 14 after Darren Roberts refused to answer my questions taking issue with my publication of his name in this blog post. I presented these 7 questions to the TransLink External Affairs team. Today, 10/01/17, after apologies for failing to respond to my questions in a timely fashion I received a phone call and email from Jesse at the TransLink Call Centre/Customer Relations. I was able to confirm from Kristen from the TransLink External Affairs team that my requests for information from TransLink Call Centre/Customer Relations  08/12/16, Darren Roberts 09/12/1, and TransLink External Affairs 14/12/16 were amalgamated. 


Text of email from Jesse at TransLink Customer Relations, 10/01/17, TransLink@translink.com.au

Dear Michael

I am writing in follow up to your telephone call to TransLink on 8 December 2016 and email on 9 December 2016, requesting information on the recent fair review.

In consulting with the relevant department we were provided with the information below:

Thank you for your enquiries in relation to the Queensland Government’s Fairer Fares for South East Queensland package.

As you would be aware, on Sunday 12 June 2016 the Queensland Government announced the Fairer Fares reform package in response to the recommendations of the SEQ Fare Review Taskforce. The package delivers more affordable fares for the vast majority of public transport users in SEQ.

Following the announcement, TransLink Division within the Department of Transport and Main Roads commenced a five week community awareness program to inform the community about the Fairer Fares package and gather feedback to inform future approaches to public transport fares.

Information about Fairer Fares was made available on the Fare Review website (https://haveyoursay.translink.com.au/SEQ-Fare-Review) including the Fare Review Taskforce Report, the Government’s Fairer Fares for SEQ document, a fare comparison calculator, FAQs, case studies, fare schedules and zone maps.

Community members were encouraged to provide input into the future direction of fares in SEQ through an online survey which was open until midnight, Sunday 17 July 2016. There were 3,555 survey responses from across SEQ. The focus of the survey was gathering community feedback to guide the longer term approach to fares.

On Wednesday 31 August 2016, the Hon Stirling Hinchliffe, Minister for Transport and the Commonwealth Games, made a statement to the Queensland Parliament on the outcomes of the feedback process. A summary of the feedback from the community was provided in the Fairer Fares Community Engagement Report, which was released to the public via the Fare Review website on Monday 5 September 2016. A copy of the report is attached for your reference.

Previously, implementation of the Fairer Fares package was scheduled to occur in early 2017, however following the completion of all system updates and testing, the changes were implemented successfully on Monday 19 December 2016.

The following changes now apply across South East Queensland:

·         zones reduced from 23 to 8, with cheaper fares across all zones

·         the off-peak period extended through to 6am (currently 3am) with the off-peak discount retained at 20%

·         children aged five to 14 years inclusive travel free at the weekend on an orange child go card

·         50% per cent off journeys after eight journeys in a week with a go card (replacing the existing 'Nine and FREE' incentive)

·         free travel for seniors and pensioners after two journeys in a day (existing incentive retained).

As part of the Fairer Fares package, the Queensland Government also committed to introducing concession fares to people on the Newstart Allowance, Youth Allowance (job seekers) and Asylum Seekers. TransLink is working with the relevant Federal agencies to develop the frameworks and systems to support these new concession products, with implementation planned for 2017.

TransLink has commenced an awareness campaign across South East Queensland to inform existing customers about the fare and zone changes. If you have further questions about the changes, please contact TransLink on 13 12 30 or visit the TransLink website at translink.com.au, where detailed zone maps and fare tables can be viewed.

I trust this has been of assistance.

Kind regards

Jesse

TransLink Customer Relations

Fare and Zone Comparison Table: April 2016

Following from the increase in transfers on Sydney's Opal Card system which was being exploited by Opal Runners doing something very similar to the 'notching up' we were seeing here a few years back. Opal Card  transfers have increased from 3 to 7. A few more transfers would give some SEQ commuters blessed relief, but Translink (under LNP and ALP) wont hear of any changes to number of transfers or transfer window length.

Here is our updated fare and zone comparison table.

Why have we not posted here for 11 months?

We never got our second promised meeting with Jackie Trad. In fact her staff were not prepared to provide us with any response let alone a formal refusal.

While Jackie Trad was transport minister she managed to create an even more muddied situation than when she arrived in office. She launched the current fare review that we know almost nothing about, and has included no consultation with the people. The terms of reference were not presented for discussion in any way, not via the media, not through a Translink run consultation. The fare review is essentially a 'black box' exercise ably assisted by our local media who seem to have zero interest in asking tough questions which is extremely disappointing. After former transport minister Scott Emerson's recent fare review taskforce leaks which are clearly timed to send messages during the Brisbane City Council and regional council elections the fare review outcomes are being used as a political football. New transport minister Stirling Hinchcliffe has shifted the language around the fare review emphasising the release of it's recommendations and skipping over the first phase when the taskforce will present a "detailed options paper" for community engagement. We are right to be very concerned about this situation.

While Jackie Trad might have gained a tiny bit of mileage from cancelling planned fare increases the situation remains as dire as ever. The new transport minister refuses to engage in any communication with us. This is especially saddening because Translink have embarked on some disturbing and completely uncommunicated, non-integrated ticketing options, and new, adhoc bus route reforms that have been "funded" by the BCC. Translink continues to allow council to operate outside of it's role as planning stakeholder and bus service provider.

We've included here the most recent fare table and we swear we'll be more active with content here as soon as we shake off the mud and confusion.

You can look forward to our review of Brisbane City Council election policies (profoundly disappointing) and we will be following up with Translink on their suite of new and bizarre "ticket-types" being piloted and rolled out while the fare review continues it's deliberations.

Our Meeting with the new Transport Minister and Setting the Agenda

On March the 6th we met with new Transport Minister Jackie Trad. We thank her for taking time to meet us, a grass-roots protest group, and hear our concerns. We told her public transport in South East Queensland is woefully inadequate and needs major reform. This won’t be easy and requires vision and commitment.

We strongly reiterated our key concerns which included concessions for low income Health Care Card (HCC) holders, abolishing the Tertiary Transport Concession Card (TTCC), fare and zone reform, organisational reform of the three existing bureaucracies (Queensland Rail, Brisbane Transport and Translink), and removal of existing public transport planning powers from Brisbane City Council.

The minister reconfirmed her stated election position, including fare reform, abolishing the TTCC and concessions for HCC holders, but she could not yet provide specific time frames. She took our views on board regarding the parlous state of SEQ PT and the need for reform. Importantly, she agreed to meet us again in six months.

A week later we were pleased to find our opinion piece based on our briefing to the minister had been published in the Courier Mail, the first time our name has ever been mentioned in that paper. We feel the response has been positive and that some more engaging conversations will happen in the coming months.

We understand that this Labor government has it's work cut out, but we feel that much can be done by our new transport minister to engage with the court of public opinion. This is where we will be drumming up some visions for the future based on what the people want and asking Jackie Trad to share more about how our system really works so that the public can make an informed contribution.

MINISTERIAL BRIEF: THIS IS OUR AGENDA FOR REFORM

Ministerial Brief

To: The Hon Jackie Trad MP, Deputy Premier and Minister for Transport, Minister for Infrastructure, Local Government and Planning and Minister for Trade

By: The Translink Ripoff, March 2015

PURPOSE

The Purpose of the meeting is to discuss the current status of, and a reform agenda for public transport in south-east Queensland.

BACKGROUND/ VISION

What do the great cities of the world have in common? Efficient, affordable, easy-to-use public transport (PT) systems. We envisage a world-class SEQ PT system that is integral to the social and economic fabric of the region that people feel good about using.

The reality is that our PT system is woefully inadequate, expensive, not easy to use and needs complete reform to begin to drag it towards world best practice. Currently, it is a transport mode of last resort.

Why is Brisbane PT so inadequate and expensive in comparison to other Australian and international cities? (It’s not density. Perth, for example, has similar densities).

Decades of underdevelopment, neglect and corruption under the Country/ National Party of Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen meant that the Goss Government had a huge reform task when elected in 1989. Also Brisbane’s low-density and low population meant that traffic congestion arrived later than elsewhere. The size of the reform task combined with the unique huge local government which had administrative control of buses in a bus-dominated system, meant that PT was not prioritised by the State and left largely to the BCC. This situation has continued for far too long.

Public transport policy inertia during a time of rapid population growth has resulted in a 1990s transport system for a city that purports to be ‘world-class’.

We acknowledge and are encouraged by the Transport Minister’s stated commitment to introducing concession fares for Health Care Card holders, abolishing the TTCC and duplicating the Sunshine Coast rail line. However, these measures, while vitally important, are only ‘playing catch-up’ and addressing individual aspects of a system in need of root-and-branch reform.

SEQ PT system reform would commence with a broad inquiry with authentic community consultation which would inform the process. Reform would include organisational restructuring and cultural change, new key infrastructure components, greater emphasis on rail and light rail rather than buses, fare reform and greater coordination between rail and bus modes. This task won’t be easy, and requires a visionary Transport Minister and government who can see Brisbane as a world class city with a world class PT system. PT system reform undertaken by former WA Transport Minister Alannah McTiernan during the previous decade, which included streamlining the bureaucracy into the single TransPerth entity and constructing new and highly utilised train links, exists as evidence that it can be done.

The challenge for the state government is to reform SEQ PT into an affordable, efficient, fast, coordinated system that compares well with other affluent cities.
ISSUES

SEQ PT issues are many and varied and complex. These include but are not limited to:

• Compares poorly with other cities: More expensive than anywhere else, and not as good as anywhere else (see our blog).
• Too bus reliant, a unique feature of the system and a key reason for the high cost and poor quality. Buses will always be an integral component, but they are inefficient in terms of capacity and contributing to traffic congestion, particularly peak times in the CBD. (The Springfield and Redcliffe rail links and the GC light rail are steps in the right direction).
• The only State capital without concessions for Health Care Card holders: High fares and no concession means low income earners must severely ration their PT use. In other words they can't afford to use it. Unemployed people can't canvass for employment, perform voluntary work or connect with friends and relatives. A human rights lawyer told us an anecdote about a junior basketball team of African immigrants who jogged across multiple suburbs to get to games because they could not afford bus fares. We spoke to an apprentice chef who is spending over half his income on train and bus fares. We could go on and on…
• Poor community attitude toward SEQ PT: Very few people like our PT system. We have been out on the streets canvassing support for system reform and gauging community concerns for over three years, and living here for much longer. There is very little community support for, and indeed significant hostility toward, the Brisbane PT system. It is the transport mode of last resort.
• Catching a taxi or buying an old car is often a better alternative: A taxi is usually a better option for 2 or more people. In other Australian cities this is the case for 3, 4 or 5 or more people. We often hear from people, and read in internet comments, that people believe it is cheaper and easier to buy and maintain an old car than to rely on PT. This has indeed been the experience of some TLR activists.
• Tourists do not embrace our PT: Visitors from interstate or overseas are generally stunned at the high cost and poor quality of our PT. Moreover, Brisbanites who travel are amazed at how cheap and easy PT systems are to use in cities elsewhere.
• The bureaucracy is fractured and cumbersome: BT and QR work in isolation and with hostility towards each other rather than cooperatively, and Translink doesn’t have the political or legal backing to adequately address this. We have three organisations where other cities have one. This is a core problem.
• Real costs of sub-standard PT, (congestion, pollution, social isolation), are externalised; Any discussion of running costs occurs in isolation. For example in 2010 when the ALP government was promoting the ‘need’ for 80% fare increases over 5 years based on ‘the 75% subsidy’. This has to change to build political momentum for reform. The state government needs to view PT delivery as a core responsibility, like public safety, which delivers real environmental, social and economic benefits, not as a burden that has to be subsidised.
• Generally not easy to use; unless you are a well-organised, regular user (It is difficult, for example, to find somewhere to recharge a Go Card after hours, and in many suburbs at any time of day).

Those who defend SEQ PT obfuscate and highlight specific services that work well for those that live near and use them, but this does not counter the reality of the inadequate and uncoordinated system as a whole. Moreover, Translink’s self-reviewed performance is designed and framed in ways that conceals this reality. (The contrast between Tranlink’s customer satisfaction reporting with the hundreds of comments from frustrated SEQ PT users under every media article on the topic is stark.)

There is no coherent SEQ PT vision or plan, or if there is, it hasn’t been/ isn’t being implemented. Historically governments either wouldn’t or couldn’t tackle the long-overdue task of reform and have instead resorted to ad hoc, reactive PT policy.

Examples and evidence of ad hoc policy include the non-alignment of zones across bus and rail modes (and generally complex zones), annual rolling 20% and 15% fare increases, the open-to-rorting 9-trips-then-free, the free Kangaroo Point ‘City Hopper’ ferry, the creation of special tourist fares, the TTCC and the CCR/ BAT as political football (see Appendix for more discussion of these policies).

RECOMMENDATIONS
A wide ranging SEQ PT inquiry or review that would include authentic community consultation and involve comparing costs, organisational structure, efficiencies and outcomes with other cities, (benchmarking) and consider the costs of having a sub-standard system and the benefits of having a good one. The inquiry would inform a reform process that would get Brisbane and SEQ moving, bring our PT up to a standard that compares well with other cities, and deliver huge social, environmental and economic benefits. Reforms would probably include:

• Organisational/ Institutional reform to get the different arms, BT, QR and Translink, leaner and rowing in the same direction. We need an integrated public transport organisational structure, (BrisMetro?), with a transparent, cooperative and user-focused culture.
• Commitment to undertake authentic community consultation to inform the SEQ PT inquiry and reform process.
• More emphasis on rail and light-rail rather than buses; Brisbane’s bus-centric PT is unique and unsustainable for a city of its size and projected growth.
• Rail or light rail links to new big residential developments; like Kurilpa Point and The Gap Cedar Woods mega-suburb. Developers will contribute to infrastructure costs. Adding a few more buses as is currently proposed won’t cut it.
• Rationalising zones; most other cities haves 1 or 2 zones in an area where we have 7 or 8. Brisbane Zone 1 is 1.5km while Perth’s is 7km and Sydney and Melbourne’s are 10km. Also the bus and rail zones do not align.
• Cross-River Rail that would feed into an underground inner-city loop; Urgently-needed infrastructure that would increase rail capacity and efficiency. An inner city loop would have stops at existing Central and Roma Street, as well as new CBD stations, and provide for future rail expansion.
• Duplicating the Sunshine Coast line; Urgently-needed infrastructure that would revitalise the Sunshine Coast and connect it with SEQ, increase liveability, tourism and promote economic growth.
• Fare reform; concession fares for health care card holders (like every other big Australian city), more flexible ticket options to enable people to save based on their usage patterns (like every other big Australian city). Lower fares across the board to increase usage, decrease congestion and pollution, and get our City moving.

SEQ PT is in desperate need of reform. Let’s get SEQ PT up to scratch and get our region moving.

Jackie Trad, Queensland Transport Minister as of February 2015

References

Unearthed 2004 Zone Map: What it shows us.

http://ttripoff.blogspot.com.au/2013/10/unearthed-2004-zone-map-what-it-shows-us.html

It's Election Time: Compare the State Capitals

http://ttripoff.blogspot.com.au/2015/01/its-election-time-compare-state-capitals.html

Bremner, D. 2009. ‘How Translink could engage the community to produce an equitable and future-focused fare structure.’ Masters Thesis, QUT http://www.scribd.com/doc/24740277/How-TransLink-could-engage-the-community-to-produce-an-equitable-and-future-focused-fare-structure#scribd

Brisbane commuters abandon buses, choose cars instead, Brisbane Times, 12/9/14

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/brisbane-commuters-abandon-buses-choose-cars-instead-20140911-10fqak.html

Forty trips reaps $10 Go Card profit, Brisbane Times, 1/3/2012 http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/forty-trips-reaps-10-go-card-profit-20120103-1pjkv.html

Kelly, J.F. and Donegan, P. 2015. City Limits: Why Australia’s cities are broken and how we can fix them, Melbourne University Press: Parkville.

New Facebook page started by student tells Brisbane train commuters where TransLink officers are, Courier Mail http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/new-facebook-page-started-by-student-tells-brisbane-train-commuters-where-translink-officers-are/story-fnihsrf2-1226976028981

Go card for visitors (SEEQ Card) - another TransLink fail!, http://brizcommuter.blogspot.com.au/2012/10/go-card-for-visitors-another-translink.html

McTiernan, Alannah, 2013. How the West was won: (Former WA Transport Minster’s powerpoint presentation on the benefits of public transport reform and investment over toll roads), http://trainsnottollroads.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Alannah-MacTiernan-Presentation-from-Trains-not-Toll-Roads-Launch-June-13-2013.pdf

Appendix: Examples and evidence of ad hoc PT policy

• The zones. When the system was ‘integrated’ for ticketing purposes BT refused to consider zone reform. This is why there are so many zones in comparison to other cities and also why the bus and rail zones don’t align.
• Annual, rolling 20%-15% fare increases commencing in 2010 for a total 80% fare increase planned by Labor over 5 years, effectively doubling fares. A knee-jerk response to falling revenues and increasing running costs that gave little or no consideration to system reform, how fares compared with other cities and the economic, social and environmental impacts of high fares and a poor system. This is the perennial Brisbane PT dog-chasing-its-tail dilemma; revenues fall because the system is inadequate and expensive to use, so governments increase fares, which causes patronage to fall again, and so it goes.
• 10-trips-then-free; the 2012 11^th hour ALP election promise, (which was subsequently trumped by the LNP’s 9-Trips). This was policy on the run, open to rorting, and tacit acknowledgment of the impact of, and people’s hostility to rolling annual fare increases and the highest fares in Australia.
• The free ‘City Hopper’ cross- river Kangaroo Point ferry; While the vast majority of residents were paying the highest fares in Australia for sub-standard service, out of the blue the BCC establishes a FREE ferry for one select group of residents. We are yet to hear a satisfactory explanation for the existence of the City Hopper.
• The creation of ‘special’ tourist fares: These have included the SEEQ Go Card, the Go Explore card for Gold Coast tourists and the G20 Go Card. These were proposed and developed is a result of tacit acknowledgment of and embarrassment about the high cost and poor quality of SEQ PT, and the potential to create a bad impression upon visitors.
• The Tertiary Transport Concession Card (TTCC); an expression and result of misplaced paranoia about fare evasion. The TTCC was a solution in search of a problem that unnecessarily placed a significant administrative burden on students, tertiary institutions and government.
• CRR/ BAT; the desperately-needed rail link as political football. (We believe CRR was/ is a good option within the given policy context, albeit undertaken at the 11^th hour. The BAT was Simpsons ‘Springfield Monorail’-esque bad policy that would have further entrenched Brisbane’s unique and unsustainable bus-centrism).

Fairness, Honesty, Talk to us!

It's the night before the election, Jan 30th, 2015 and we're disappointed that the ALP and LNP left the affordability crisis in South East Queensland off their campaign agendas. Promised policy statements never appeared and no debate could take place. 

The Translink Ripoff team have been bouncing around some ideas and below you can read the values we want politicians to take on board. We will assess what policy and commitments have been put forward against our values and give you an honest assessment of each party in our next post. 

Fairness

 

High fares, tiny and complex zones, disappearing services, and cumbersome bureaucracy (TTCC) make us all struggle, but the people who struggle the most are the unemployed and under employed, many of whom can’t afford transport, or are forced to severely limit their transport use. Fairness can only happen when politicians make plans with battlers in mind.

 

 

Honesty

The people of SEQ know that their public transport system is woefully inadequate and far too expensive.  And yet Translink and State Government’s selective and strategic use of statistics and design of survey parameters suggests the opposite.  No amount of spin or advertising is going to fix the system. We need politicians to be upfront and face reality. Politicians need to do what needs to be done to get to a decent system, and that starts with honesty.

 

Talk to us!

 

Public transport needs to deliver the services that people want. The best way to find out what the people want is to talk to us. Ask us about the services we want delivered, let us talk to the planners, and listen for our answers.

It's Election Time: Compare the State Capitals

Let's Make Public Transport an Election Issue

The Translink Ripoff is nearly three years old and at this moment in time we think the people of South East Queensland are ready to make public transport an election issue.

New Facebook pages have appeared and people from all over SEQ have been growing more active in the fight against an unfair system. Where are the Translink officers at? was started by a first year uni student who has amazed us with his organising skills. It was an extremely effective response to introduction, masses of red tape, and delay involved with the new Tertiary Transport Concession Card. The TTCC debacle is yet another of example of failed consultation and aggressive regulation. Students have been made into a political football with Translink targeting inner city campuses with new Senior Network Officers deployed to busy student routes to find "students in suits"..

We've decided the time is right for us to bring on new admins for our Facebook page. We believe diversity is strength and new voices will help highlight the range of issues facing SEQ commuters. There is so much to do to keep public transport in the election spotlight for both state and local elections.

Putting the call out for admins has reminded us of why we started The Translink Ripoff in the first place. The lack of concession fares for low income health care card holders makes Queensland the most unfair state in Australia. We want this embarrassing and unfortunate circumstance to change. That's our bottom line.

We look forward to the next six months. We will do everything we can to make sure the stories from people suffering after services cuts, poor service frequency, lack of connectivity, and massive fares get heard.

Our table of shame updated with more smart card info.

After feedback from Facebook followers we've done some research including interstate phone calls to find out what's going on with smart cards and fares. When we first created this table the Go Card system was the most well established in Australia. Now the Myki card is well established in Melbourne and in Perth the SmartRider card is the way to go. Adelaide's Metro card is a little more advanced than Sydney's Opal card.

You'll see that we've added info about the number of transfers and you'll see that SEQ misses out again. To find information about transfers we had to call the info lines for each Transit Authority.

Translink Facebook page launch a total failure.

On or around the 26th of February 2014 the Translink Facebook page went live. Information about the Facebook page launch was unavailable until the 4th of March when the Department of Transport and Main Roads issued this statement. 

At the time of writing no other announcement or promotion of the Facebook page has been issued. The minister Scott Emerson has made no statement through his website or on Twitter, the Translink website has no media releases and contains no mention or links to the Facebook page, and the Twitter handle @translinkseq has made no mention of the Facebook page.

On March the 6th this article appeared in The Courier Mail (online) titled "TransLink launches Facebook page and probably regrets it already". In it seasoned reporter Robyn Ironside outlines the wave of complaints and disparaging statements that followed the discovery of the page by residents of South East Queensland. These complaints have continued to pour in and a series of accusations of political bias and censorship have been received. We were active on the Translink page during this time and were subsequently banned from the page due to the repetitive nature of our posting. We also garnered more than 100 new followers. While we were one of the prominent posters of disparaging remarks Robyn Ironside and her editors were careful not to mention us or our name.

The vast majority of posts to the Translink Facebook page are from unhappy customers. Many have been very unsatisfied with the response of the page moderators to their complaints. One of the most poignant criticisms is that Translink's approach to community engagement through social media is typical of their style of engagement overall. Translink Facebook page moderators have been accused of being disingenuous gatekeepers with no real concern for attending to needs of customers.

To sum it up. No promotion and the absolute bare minimum of notice given to the public who actually use the services offered. One media story that highlights the extreme levels of public anger and frustration at Translink.

Why the bus cuts fell to pieces.

by Michael Swifte

 

Yarn bombed bus stop on Sarah St in Annerley.

When we first saw this photo posted to the Annerley Junction Annerley Arcade facebook page we knew we were witnessing a pivotal moment in the relationship between the people of Brisbane and their public transport providers. We've watched the public transport scene very closely over the past 2 years and have seen nothing online or elsewhere that showed such a positive and fierce response to the brutal strategies of Translink under successive governments. This image was shared widely on facebook and twitter, spawned newspaper stories and blog posts, and also made it onto local TV. This image/action helped to strengthen the resolve of  the many local groups who were lobbying their councilors to save their bus routes. It also led to the transport minister Scott Emerson handing over the Brisbane bus routes review process to the Brisbane City Council.

For many Brisbane bus users there is one route that is most important, it passes within a short walking distance of their house, and there are generally just enough services during peak times to get to and from work. They have an intimate knowledge of the small part of the network that they rely on, and they know the only other options available to them are infrequent, inconsistent, and much further to walk.  In the last 4 years Brisbane bus users have seen a 72.5% increase in fares, little improvement in service frequency, congestion on busways and in the CBD, and no improvement in buses arriving on time. So when Translink presented their review and suggested cuts the people clung to what they knew could be relied upon.

Most Brisbanites don't have time to analyse the latest political squabble or planning trend and are understandably suspicious of the transport minister's latest promises and spin. Most have a general understanding of their political representation and most know who is responsible for running the buses. It's not surprising then that in frustration at Translink they saw an opportunity to seek advocacy as constituents and rate payers. Brisbanites turned to their local councilor to defend what they knew worked for them. 

The handover of the reform of Brisbane bus networks to the BCC revealed in technicolor that Translink is at odds with its largest bus service provider. It also revealed that Translink had failed to consult effectively with the public. Planners and transit boffins decried the loss of Translink's new high frequency network plans,  but the people whose local buses were set to disappear were happy that they had retained that last sliver of convenience. In failing to effectively consult the people Translink failed to identify an important component of public transport provision that industry leaders call 'coverage' (not leaving huge unserviced gaps). They also failed to identify an important trait shown by people who have been beaten down and boxed into a corner - they rise up and fight back harder than ever!



 

What happens when transit authorities lose the plot?

Yesterday Translink brought in the fourth consecutive annual fare rise. The fare rise which makes an overall 72.5% rise in fares since 2008 has been advertised as half the rise that was scheduled by the previous government - this is irrelevant and ludicrous.

Other state premiers have had to fight for even a 2% rise while here we are expected to accept the assertion that a fare rise will make catching public transport more affordable?

Below is the latest update of our ever popular national comparison table. All fares listed are for peak times.

Still unaffordable!

We prepared this table from information available from transit authority websites for each mainland state capital.

Look at the state of zone 1!

This is an updated version with some corrections 09/09/12. Our apologies to anyone living in the zone 1 part of Kangaroo Point.

We rode the boundaries of Zone 1 on our push bikes in order to plot out it's true shape (a bunyip?). Please take the time to observe that it is in no way circular as indicated on the Translink maps. We have discovered that the shifting of zones has occurred all over the Brisbane Metro area.

Look at the state of these zones!

Brisbane's public transport zones under Translink are a product of  a long history of manipulation and disorganised attempts to create an effective integrated ticketing system. The map we have created shows the various tentacles created by the inclusion of  transition zones or 'precincts' which make up 20% of all train stations on the Translink network. It is a band aid solution that has become part of their system which is why Translink don't provide us with good zone information, and we have to go and dig it out. 

Have a close look at Darra Station. Look near it and you will see just how ridiculous and unfair this zoning system is to people in Inala.

We used online maps, journey planner, timetables, push bikes, walking, and lots of local knowledge to plot the REAL zone boundaries for this segment of Brisbane's south. You can see how they've manipulated the boundaries along train lines a

nd the South East Busway.
We have 5 more of these to do to complete the map of Brisbane, but it takes a lot of work and local knowledge. If you would like to help, we have prepared some instructions for doing the research and plotting the zone changes. Just get in touch and we'll help get you started.

National comparison table

We prepared this table using info gathered from the transit websites for each city. Feel free to print it out.

Notching up with the 9 journey cap

The current government said they were going to do something about cost of living. They've said they would do something to make public transport more affordable. Tomorrow they deliver the one thing that will make fares lower until the next fare rise in 6 months time. Changing the 10 journey cap to a 9 journey cap is a tiny tweak to an existing fare saving opportunity that is targeted at those who commute to work full time.

So make the most of this tiny tweak. It's now even cheaper to notch up your go-card. 

Here's how our notching up service works. 

• I provide the service to people who work in or around the Brisbane CBD on Monday mornings so as to optimize the benefits for the rest of the week. Ideally you will have notched one journey getting to work. 
• You need to provide me with an unregistered go-card as this protects both of us from infringement of Translink rules as anyone can be the bearer of an unregistered go-card.
• I charge $1 per notch and the go-card needs to be charged with enough credit to cover the cost of 8-1 zone (off peak) journeys $19.52 or the cost of 9-1 zone (off peak) journeys $21.96 if you have not notched up a journey that morning.
• Text me your workplace address or a meeting place, I'll meet you around 9am, grab your go-card and $8 or $9, and return it before you finish work. 

The cost of each journey will be $3.44 which is a significant saving! I am eager to get as many go-cards as I can as I have a new strategy that will allow me to notch up go-cards in bulk. This may interest your co-workers?

Michael Swifte

0449 180 465

Ladies and gentlemen, The REAL Zone 1. We rode the boundaries of Zone 1 on our push bikes in order to plot out it's true shape (a bunyip?). Please take the time to observe that it is in no way circular as indicated on the Translink maps. We have discovered that the shifting of zones has occurred all over the Brisbane Metro area. It would be very interesting to see a true map of all zones.

Top 3 Go Card loopholes

We have been interrogating the Go Card system and have found it to be incredibly complex. We put this complexity down to attempting to integrate the ancient no-returns rule that has existed on Brisbane Transport buses since they begun 46 years ago. It is also a product of the enormous size of the Translink network and the need to accommodate very long and short trips under the same system of transfer rules.

After speaking with a wide range of Translink users we have discovered some of the loopholes that are being exploited by ordinary people trying to make public transport more affordable. They involve choosing when and where it is better to ignore the advice from Translink on when touch on or touch off at un-gated train stations, and how the no-returns rule is not enforced through the Go Card system. These loopholes are not being policed by Translink in any way and it is next to impossible to be caught using them.

1. The return journey to the shops
   Bus drivers and QR ticket inspectors are instructed to enforce the ancient no-returns rules on paper tickets but the Go Card system does not recognise a return journey. This is great news for those on a budget who have only one bus route in their area. If you are able to touch on for your return trip within an hour of touching off you can affect a return journey. If you follow the instructions on the Translink website you would be charged twice. If you had a paper ticket you may be asked to buy another ticket.
   
   
2. The half day journey (this loophole has been closed)
   Every time you touch off with your Go Card the clock starts ticking and after an hour your journey will expire. The Translink website specifies that all journeys on the Go Card are to be one way but allows up to 6 hours from when you first touch on to complete your journey . Because the Go Card system does not police return journeys, by using the train you can make a return journey of up to 6 hours simply by touching on again before leaving the station after your first trip (does not apply at gated stations). Under the Go Card transfer rules you must touch on for your last trip within 3.5 hours of first touching on, so if your first trip has taken 30 minutes, simply touch back on, leave the station and return in time to touch off at your final destination before the 6 hours has expired.
   
   
3. The trip stretch
   This is similar to the half day journey except it involves delaying touching off at non-gated stations. If you have an appointment that will last more than an hour, then by simply not touching off when you exit the station and then touching off when you return to the station you can delay the start of the 1 hour transfer window. After you have touched off you then touch on for your return trip. The Go Card system thinks your first trip has been longer than it actually was and you save yourself from being charged twice. 
   
   
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