Victorian Transport Network Absorbs 1.64 Million Extra Passengers as Daily Demand Spikes

Public transport patronage in Australia has a rare opening during the current fuel crisis. Jeroen Weimar says the sector should use it to change how people think about mobility. This is reported by the railway transport news portal Railway Supply.

Fuel crisis creates opening for public transport, Weimar says

As Rail Express reported, Weimar described the fuel crisis as a “heaven-sent opportunity”. He said the sector should use it to change how people think about mobility.

Weimar is Secretary of the Victorian Department of Transport and Planning. He made the comments this week during the PTAANZ Public Transport Policy Symposium. The event was held at Metropolis in Melbourne.

“With people spending $200, $250 to fill up the tanks [of their cars], we can’t waste this crisis.

“Our colleagues at Monash University and every other research institution would give their right arm for an opportunity like this to see – what will this do to our system? How will travel patterns change?”

Free public transport and half-price fares in Victoria

Victoria has made public transport free during April and May. Fares will then be cut to half price for the rest of the year.

That shift frames Weimar’s question. He asked whether passengers will continue using the system after the initial fare period.

Also, Weimar said demand has already risen by 25 to 35 per cent. The increase spans trains, trams and buses.

Meanwhile, weekend patronage on V/Line services has more than doubled. Many people have used recent good weather to visit regional towns.

“Last week, we carried 1.64 million more people than we did in the same week last year,” Weimar said.

“That means for every four people we carried last year, we’re now carrying five – across an increasingly diverse and complex set of journeys.

“We’re now back to pre-Covid levels in terms of demand on our daily transport system.”

Public transport patronage and passenger loyalty

Still, Weimar said the industry faces a challenge. It must make the most of this period of higher public transport patronage.

“How do we ensure the majority of those passengers who are traveling with us for free stay on the journey when those fares go up to half price?” he asked.

“We have five weeks to make the most of this.”

In addition, he said public understanding is imperative. That includes how public transport integrates into people’s lives.

“We have to build loyalty from these bold experiments [such as making public transport free],” he continued.

That will come back to our fundamentals – reliability, frequency, customer service, good support and staff, and giving people a sense of how the systems work for them. But it’s also about network improvement.”

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