As much as I’d love it, free public transport is a bad idea

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Public transport should never be a money train. But asking for a full fare-free system would be driving a hard bargain.

My earliest memories of public transport are with my grandma in Perth: clutching a 50 cent coin which, at the time, was enough to buy a concession ticket.

We do have some discounts across Australia, including free or concession fares for students, seniors and low-income earners. But Keblowsky says other groups may be falling through the gaps. “The state has to recognise people who are worthy of a discounted or free fare, and those people also have to recognise themselves,” he says.

A potential downside of fare-free public transport, however, is people being likely to use it for short trips when they otherwise would have walked or cycled. In the Estonian capital of Tallinn, walking tripswhen their fare-free system kicked in. And in Melbourne, many short walking trips have been replaced by tram rides in the fare-free tram zone, reducing some of the health benefits.than in May 2019, before its fare-free public transit policy was introduced.

 

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