The Queensland government’s six-month trial of 50 cent public transport fares has already broken a number of records across its first week in action.
Patronage across all modes of public transport has jumped dramatically, with South East Queensland public transport use returning to 98.5 per cent of pre-COVID levels for the week as a whole.
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More than four million passenger trips were taken, with total trips up 11.1 per cent from the previous week and up 11.6 per cent from a comparable week in 2023-24. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays were the busiest days in the week.
The weekend was a standout in particular, with Saturday and Sunday both recording their busiest days ever on the network.
“We put the call out for Queenslanders to make the most of this trial and they are doing just that,” says Queensland premier Steven Miles.
“These are encouraging results that are delivering real savings for commuters. My government is continuing to do what matters for Queenslanders by delivering record cost-of-living relief.”
Across Monday, August 5 to Sunday, August 11:
- There was more than $7 million in savings from the first week of the trial, based on the same number of trips being taken under the previous fares structure
- August 10 and 11 were the busiest Saturday and Sunday in the history of the South East Queensland public transport network with Saturday up 17.4 per cent on pre-COVID levels and Sunday up 15.9 per cent on pre-COVID levels
- The most bus (up 15.8 per cent on pre-COVID levels) and train (up 11 per cent on pre-COVID levels) trips in a single Saturday were taken on August 10
- August 11 was the busiest Sunday of all time on the bus network with trips up 16.6 per cent on pre-COVID levels and the second busiest Sunday ever on the train network with a 6.9 per cent increase on pre-COVID levels
“How fantastic to see South East Queenslanders getting out and about on public transport while keeping money in their pockets,” says Queensland minister for transport and main roads Bart Mellish.
“In the first week of 50 cent fares, we have almost returned to pre-COVID levels which is a great result.
“This is a cost-of-living initiative first and foremost and on average, South East Queenslanders saved more than $1 million per day last week.
“It’s not just commuters who are benefiting – we said before the trial that 50 cent fares would provide a great opportunity for residents and tourists to explore some of the great locations across our region and the data shows people did exactly that over the weekend.
“We saw busy days across all modes of the public transport, including the busiest weekends ever in the South East, but still within capacity of existing services, which is exactly what we hoped for.”
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