Image: Beau Giles
Today will live in infamy. The day when the New South Wales government’s public transport all-in-one travel token, the Opal card annexed the entire system and paper tickets went the way of the Tasmanian Tiger.
It’s hard not to write this as a eulogy, but it almost is that way. The paper ticket was a hallmark of Sydney commuting for decades, with passengers potentially needing several in a day if they travelled in multiple modes like train, bus, ferry or light rail.
Well having a wallet or purse full of old, fading tickets will now be a thing of the past.
Starting from 1st August, 2016, Transport for NSW has announced that paper tickets are no longer sold or accepted. It’s Opal only from now on.
The Department released a statement saying that the last customers without an Opal card have ‘responded well’ to the information campaign, with 350,000 Opal cards issued in the last month and 10,000 calls to Opal Customer Care just in the last two weeks.
NSW Minister for Transport and Infrastructure Andrew Constance is asking customers to be prepared.
“For those who’ve left it to the last minute, it’s still very easy to grab an adult or child/youth Opal card from a retailer this morning and top it up on the spot,” Mr Constance said.
Mr Constance said there are more than 2,100 retailers like newsagents, Woolworths, 7-Elevens or Service NSW outlets where you can pick one up.
“Today is the start of a new and exciting chapter in our public transport system. Once you get your Opal it’s in your wallet or purse and you don’t have to worry about it again,” Mr Constance said.
For those unlucky enough to forget their card or leave it at home, Transport for NSW has a solution to that as well. Those customers can use ‘single trip’ adult or child/youth Opal as a back-up.
These single trip opals for trains, ferries or light rail are available at stations or wharves, or on board the 5,000 Opal buses as a last resort.
