Commuters fined for fare evasion under Queensland's 50 cent fare trial

Hundreds of public transport commuters in Queensland are being fined for fare evasion every week as part of the state's 50 cent fare trial.

In the first two weeks of the trial, which the government says aims to make public transport “virtually free”, authorities issued 475 fines for fare evasion across the Translink network.

A further 2,406 warnings for fare evasion were issued to adult passengers, while minors who were not fined were warned 1,576 times.

The instant fine for fare evasion in Queensland is currently $322, meaning over $150,000 in penalties were handed out within the two-week period.

Transport Minister Bart Mellish said it was disappointing that some commuters were still “doing the wrong thing” and urged them to pay their fares.

“It’s still theft and fare evasion is still fare evasion.”

“We want to see how people log in and out so we know where they come from, where they are going and how they navigate our network.”

Mr Mellish said the number of fines for fare evasion in the first two weeks of the 50 cent fare being introduced was about normal or even slightly lower than the number of penalties normally imposed.

In the four years between 2018-19 and 2021-22, commuters received around 60,000 fines for fare evasion – an average of 288 per week.

Ensuring a “safe public transport experience”

During the six-month trial period, which began on August 5, the fare on the Translink network will be a flat rate of 50 cents, regardless of the length of the journey.

A Translink spokesman said in a statement that the public transport company would continue to crack down on fare evasion and anti-social behaviour during the trial.

“We want to ensure our customers a safe experience on public transport and ensure that customers continue to travel with a valid fare,” the spokesman said.

The spokesman also said that commuters logging in and out during their journey provided Translink with valuable data that would help evaluate the trial.

In the second week of trial operations, commuters used the Translink network more than 3.6 million times.

The approximately 2.2 million bus journeys were at 98 percent of pre-Covid-19 levels, and the more than one million rail journeys were at about 91 percent.

About 280,000 trips were made on the light rail, 40 percent more than the pre-COVID-19 commuter number, while the 130,000 ferry trips were about 99 percent of the pre-pandemic number.

When the government announced the test in May, it assumed that the total number of commuters was about 87 percent of pre-Covid-19 levels.

Translink said it had over 300 security and enforcement officers across its network who helped combat fare evasion but also played a role in security.

Translink estimates that commuters have saved more than $15 million since the trial began.