Queenslanders have embraced the state's 50-cent public transport fares, with new government data showing a surge in commuter numbers over the past six months.
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00:0050 cent public transport fares have been very popular.
00:07Yeah, it's a great idea, especially with kids.
00:0950 cents can get you anywhere, really.
00:11Well, it's excellent, it really is.
00:13I mean, if you go to London and you did a similar thing up and down the Thames,
00:16you're paying a lot of money.
00:17The new data, marking six months of discounted fares,
00:21shows commuters are voting with their feet.
00:24Overall, public transport usage is up 18.3 per cent compared to 2023.
00:31Train use is up 18.6 per cent and bus patronage nearly 16 per cent.
00:38But Brisbane's ferries are the real winner, an increase of 42.8 per cent.
00:45We are seeing a lot more discretionary travel.
00:48Ferries, intercity trips,
00:51people who are doing a trip that they otherwise might not have done.
00:55It was introduced as a cost of living measure,
00:58saving customers $181 million.
01:02Saving, like, a lot of money.
01:05Yeah, seven times 50 cents is like $3.50.
01:08We're hearing stories about families being able to go out on weekends,
01:13taking trips to the Gold Coast, for example, from Brisbane.
01:16They couldn't afford to do that before.
01:18The regional bus network was also up 20 per cent.
01:22Townsville and Mackay saw an increase of 40 per cent.
01:26But some areas are missing out.
01:29We know some of those tourism-rich regions like Far North,
01:32Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast need to be connected to the city
01:35and also to one another.
01:37An expansion of this system is being planned,
01:40with new services and higher capacity buses rolling out.
01:44Sunshine Coast Rail is in the works,
01:47as is Brisbane's new Cross River Rail system.
01:50Drivers will benefit, the government says,
01:53with fewer competing cars on the road.
01:56There was a study done for the first three months of the trial
01:59and it demonstrated an improvement in congestion here in the south-east.
02:03While changes to the transport system are coming,
02:06the Minister has confirmed 50 cent fares are here to stay.
02:14.