Metcard

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Metcard is the ticket used to access public transport in Melbourne, Australia. It is a universal ticket which allows commuters to ride on the city's Metlink network, consisting of suburban trains, trams, and buses. The Metcard is a credit card sized ticket made out of cardboard or plastic and uses a magnetic strip to store fare data.

Contents

[edit] Metcard History

A 'handy hints' Metcard
A 'handy hints' Metcard

Metcards were introduced between 1996 and 1998, shortly before the privatisation of the Met public transport system under the government of former Premier Jeff Kennett. They replaced a functionally identical yet technically simpler system of punch tickets and scratchies. Scratchies were easy to cheat and the system was eventually abandoned, but not before tickets for many years of use were printed.

Controversy surrounded Metcard at its introduction, due to cost over-runs, the abolition of tram conductors and the unreliability of ticket purchasing and validation machines. The machines were attacked by vandals frequently (often by pouring liquids into the coin slot), and have seen several revisions to their design since.

Consistent with the privatisation ethos of the government of the day, Metcard's operation was entirely outsourced, with the transport operators (at that time government-owned) having nothing to do with the system. Metcard even had its own website and branding which became stronger than the anonymous and constantly renaming government then privatised operators.

An audit released by the State Government in 2001 showed over 1 in 4 (27.2%) of the machines at train stations did not work, and 11.9% of mobile equipment in buses and trams was non-operational. The State Government renegotiated with ticketing network contract operator OneLink Transit Systems to improve the service to commuters.

Following these improvements, a 2002 audit showed an increase in availability of machines to 92.1% at train stations, and 98.3% on buses and trams. Usability was also improved, with tram machines able to sell daily tickets. Furthermore, vandalism across the network dropped by over 60% between 2001 and 2002.[1]

[edit] How Metcard Works

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Please see the discussion on the talk page.
A MVM 1 Metcard vending machine
A MVM 1 Metcard vending machine

All forms of public transport can be accessed by using a single Metcard. Metcards are a time and zone based ticket, with validity periods ranging from 2 hours to yearly, and two zones covering the Melbourne metropolitan area. Further information on the range of Metcards available is published in Metlink's Fares and Travel Guide.

Metcards can be purchased in the following ways from:

Ticket availability varies, with the sources above each stocking slightly different ranges beyond the standard two-hour, daily and seniors tickets.

Availability on board buses is particularly restricted, with neither the Sunday Saver nor off-peak tickets being available from drivers. Similarly ticket vending machines at railway stations do not stock Sunday Savers or some types of off-peak tickets.

Payment options vary from coin-only (small Metcard machines on trams and at railway stations), EFTPOS, coin and some notes (large ticket machines at stations) to EFTPOS, credit card, coin and all notes (premium railway stations).

A major limitation is that Metcard ticket vending machines will only dispense a maximum of $10 change. This restriction means that a passenger cannot withdraw cash from an ATM ($20 or $50 notes only) and buy the most common types of tickets from a Metcard machine.

As well as reducing the need for staff, a key objective of Metcard was to encourage 'off-system' ticket purchase, with the machines being only a last resort back-up. As it turned out Melburnians have been more resistant to off-system purchase than expected, so there has been much greater reliance on ticket machines than envisaged. This has made machine usability and reliability issues more serious than what might have otherwise been the case.

Instead of tackling these problems head-on, the government response has been to sidestep the issue by stressing off-system ticket purchase, just as the original Metcard designers had envisaged. Evidence of this can be seen in various 'pre purchase' advertising campaigns that are run. Also it is noteworthy that new bargain tickets (such as the $2.50 Sunday Saver) have only been made available from Metcard outlets and staffed stations (and not buses or ticket vending machines) to further encourage passenger behaviour change.

A Metcard validator, this type is found aboard buses, trams & the Stony Point train.
A Metcard validator, this type is found aboard buses, trams & the Stony Point train.

Metcards are 'validated' when entering or exiting railway stations, and getting on trams or buses. The first validation prints an expiry date and time on the back of the ticket. Subsequent validations of most types of tickets do not print extra times but the data was intended to be used to count passenger numbers (in order to improve crowded transport services). Also later, when transport operations were franchised, this data was to apportion revenue share between operators.

As it turned out, this method realised little conclusive data and there is little evidence of services being improved in response to this information. Patronage surveys have returned to being done manually, and the revenue system has been abandoned in favour of fixed percentage allocations (40% train, 40% tram and 20% bus). Revalidation of already validated tickets, whilst functionally unnecessary, are still required and occasional campaigns continue to remind passengers of this.

With the lack of barriers at all but a few major railway stations and trams not having conductors, enforcement is the responsibility of roaming Authorised Officers (ticket inspectors). AOs check that passengers have the correct ticket and, if using a concession ticket, have a suitable concession card.

Contrary to popular belief, AOs do not issue fines directly. Instead they issue an infringement notice. The passenger then receives a letter from the Department of Infrastructure, who may issue a fine. They can either pay up or contest it in court. As with any policing function, enforcement can give rise to conflict, and there has been rare occurrences of heavy-handed tactics both by unco-operative passengers and staff.

[edit] Zones and Fares

The Melbourne ticketing system is based on Zones and calculated depending on travel zone, with higher fares for trips that include both travel Zones. The Melbourne Zone Fare system is broken up into two ticketing Zones: Zone 1 (Yellow) and Zone 2 (Blue). The two zones form concentric rings, with Zone 1 comprising the inner suburbs, and Zone 2 covering the remainder of metropolitan Melbourne.

Previously a third zone (Zone 3) existed, comprising the outer eastern and south eastern suburbs from approximately 30-50 km from the CBD; this was merged with Zone 2 on 4th March 2007 to simplify fare structures.

Zone overlap areas exist on the borders of the two zones. In these areas tickets for either zone are acceptable.

A separate fare and ticketing system exists for V/Line (country) services. However from April 2006 holders of V/Line tickets have access to travel in Melbourne and on local regional city buses for no extra charge. Fares in most towns just outside Melbourne were also aligned to either Zone 2 or Zone 3 Metcard amounts as part of this integration.

As of January 2006, a daily Zone 1 full-fare (as distinct from concession fare) ticket costs $6.10 AUD, and a weekly Zone 1 ticket costs $26.70 AUD. Prices generally rise by inflation (CPI) on January 1 each year, though there have been occasional higher than CPI increases. However, in 2007, the price rise was initially postponed until March 1 to coincide with the abolition of the Zone 3 fare area. It was then further delayed a further three months on account of the Siemens train and associated network problems occurring in early 2007. [2]


Melbourne's public transport
Metlink Metcard myki
Modes of Transport
Trains Trams Buses
Transport Routes
Railway stations Tram routes Bus routes
Operating Companies
V/Line Connex Melbourne Yarra Trams

[edit] Future

The Metcard system is to be replaced beginning 2007 with a smartcard-based ticketing system called myki. This will cover both metropolitan (Metlink) and country (V/Line) travel. The current equipment supports a similar system based on re-usable RFID touch cards for use by public transport staff and other pass holders, however this provides neither the flexibility nor advantages intended to be brought by the new system. The two systems will coexist for several years until the transition is complete.

The new system has been announced as a Tag On / Tag Off system, where two validations are required per journey; one when boarding and again when alighting.

This means passengers will have a single card and be charged for the actual fare used. This is unlike the current system where passengers who travel into different zones at different days and times may need to buy several types of Metcards beforehand.

Tag on/tag off has both benefits and costs. On one hand it allows fares to be automatically calculated, always giving the passenger the cheapest fare option. Also, unlike Metcard, special off-peak fares to encourage travel during quiet times could be implemented, for example.

The main cost will likely be borne by passengers who do not tag off. Such passengers will likely be charged the full all-zone fare, even if their trip was very short.

In summary proper use of smartcards will save passengers money and reduce confusion, whereas wrong usage could well result in them being overcharged.

[edit] External links

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