GIPPSLAND line passengers will pay more to take the train or bus after a rise in public transport fees.
From January 1, 2022 tickets increased on regional public transport by 1.1 per cent on average, adding 80 cents to a Gippsland daily train fare.
The cost of a seven-day pass on Gippsland V/Line will jump $2.00, adding an extra $104 to
yearly travel.
The increase comes as the fare freeze that was implemented through the pandemic ends.
Data from the Department of Transport shows passenger trips have plummeted through
lockdowns, with just 600,000 trips per day across the state – down from 1.66 million per day before the pandemic began. For Traralgon V/Line services, patronage has dropped from 4959 trips a day in 2018-19 to 2466 in 2020-21.
Shadow Minister for Public Transport Steph Ryan said that the government should be striving to grow the use of public transport.
“We should be encouraging locals to find more reasons to choose public transport to travel, not less,” she said.
“Higher fares put more pressure on people still struggling to make ends meet, on sick regional Victorians travelling to Melbourne for medical appointments and is less incentive for office workers to get back to the CBD,” she said.
