Metcard

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The Metcard is the ticket used to access public transport in Melbourne, Australia (under the moniker 'Metlink'). It is a universal ticket which allows commuters to ride on the city's trains, trams, and buses.

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What is a Metcard?

A Metcard is a thin cardboard or plastic ticket with a magnetic strip carrying fare data. Image:Metcard-handyhints.gif

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Metcard History

Metcards were introduced between 1996 and 1998, shortly before the privatization 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.

Controversy surrounded the system at its introduction, particularly because the traditional conductors on the city's trams were made obsolete, and the machines used to purchase or validate the tickets were quick to break down. The machines were attacked by vandals frequently (often by pouring liquids into the coin slot), and have seen several revisions to their design since.

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 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. Furthermore, vandalism across the network dropped by over 60% between 2001 and 2002.[1]

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How Metcard Works

Image:Mvm1-machine.jpg 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 three zones covering the Melbourne metropolitan area.

Metcards can be purchased from rail station Ticket Vending Machines, staff at Premium Stations and City Stations, Ticket Vending Machines on board trams and the Stony Point Train, Bus Drivers, the Met Shop (inside the Melbourne Town Hall on Swanston Street) and at a large number of retail outlets. Tickets can also be purchased using credit cards over the internet (www.metcard.com.au) or by phone (1800 652 313).

Not all ticket types are available from all retailers. On board trams and buses, only 2 Hour, Daily, City Saver and 60 Plus tickets are available. 5 packs of Daily tickets are only available at retail outlets and the Met Shop, but not from rail stations; however, it is possible to buy a "5xDaily" ticket from stations, which can be used on five different days of the ticket holder's choosing. And in Zones 2 and 3, the Off Peak Saver ticket is still only available from rail stations despite its validity recently being extended to buses.

This system was designed to encourage people to pre-purchase their tickets at times they do not intend to travel, and keep a number of them on hand for when they actually want to travel. This is contrary to the expectations of most commuters and was poorly executed.

Image:Metcard-bus-validator.jpg Metcards are 'validated' when entering or exiting railway stations, and getting on trams or buses. The first validation prints an expiry date and/or time on the back of the ticket, and subsequent validations were to be used for allocating revenue and improving crowded transport services. This method realised little conclusive data, and both have since been abandoned in favour of fixed revenue allocations and manual surveys. Subsequent validations, whilst now technically unnecessary, are still required by law.

Many suburban Melbourne train stations are unstaffed, and trains can easily be boarded without purchasing or validating a Metcard, whilst trams no longer have conductors. To combat fare evasion, roaming teams of Authorised Officers (ticket inspectors) check commuter tickets on trains and trams. There has been rare occurences of heavy-handed tactics (both by passengers and Staff).

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Zones and Fares

Melbourne ticketing system is based on Zones and calculated depending on travel zone, with higher fares for trips crossing zone boundaries. The Melbourne Zone Fare system is broken up into three ticketing Zones: Zone 1 (Yellow), Zone 2 (Blue), and Zone 3 (Red). The first two zones form concentric rings around the inner suburbs, and Zone 3 covers the Outer Eastern and South-Eastern suburbs. From Melbourne 0 to 15 km from Melbourne is normally a Zone 1 Area 15 to 30 km from Melbourne is normally a Zone 2 Area 30 to 50 km from Melbourne is normally a Zone 3 Area. There some areas of Melbourne not include in the Melbourne zone system and may be a V/Line or a country Fare and there some locations in Melbourne are in overlap zones, for Example 550 Northland Shopping Centre to Latrobe Uni bus, You can use a Zone 1 or a Zone 2 ticket on 550 bus. Tickets are valid within the selected Zone or Zones only (however, tickets of weekly or longer duration may be used in any Zone on weekends). 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. Starting from 2005, Metcard prices are increasing an average of 2.25% per annum.

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Future

The Metcard system is to be replaced beginning 2007 with a smartcard-based ticketing system. 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 Scan On / Scan Off system, where two validations are required per journey - one at the beginning of your trip, and again when you get off. This means passengers will be charged for the actual fare used, unlike the current system where you have to plan and purchase an appropriate ticket. The downside to the new ticketing system is simply that - it's new - and many people struggle with the existing Metcard solution.

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External links

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