Fare changes are coming soon for passengers aged 24 and under, following the government’s decision to withdraw funding for age-based concessions. Adding to a cost-of-living crisis for young Porirua commuters.
From 1 May 2024, following the rollback of the former government’s age-based concessions on Metlink services:
- children aged 5 to 16, or older if still at secondary school, will pay half the adult fare,
- fares for people aged 17 to 24 will return to full price, unless they qualify for an alternative tertiary or Community Connect concession,
- under 5s will continue to travel for free on all services.
Greater Wellington Transport committee chair Thomas Nash says the change will be felt by young people and whānau across the region, who are already struggling with the high cost of living.
“I don’t want to end these concessions – we know they have made a big difference to people,” Cr Nash says.
“We want to maintain existing services and reliability, but we just can’t afford to cover the cost of the concessions ourselves if we want to grow the network, especially with uncertainty around public transport funding from the new government.
“At more than $10 million per year, it would require an additional rate increase beyond the 19.8 percent we’re currently proposing for the regional council.”
Greater Wellington councillors recently confirmed the concessions would not be extended with council funds and noted that half-price off-peak fares would still apply to most services.
Concessions for tertiary students, Community Services and Te Hunga Whaikaha Total Mobility card holders also remain. For users with accessibility needs, the change will make travel easier by only carrying their Te Hunga Whaikaha Total Mobility card.
“If you are under 25, I encourage you to explore the other concessions available to you to help make travel more affordable, and try to make the most of off-peak fares,” adds Cr Nash.
“In the meantime, we will continue to champion public transport as a vital social and climate-friendly service that needs more funding.”
Fare changes will automatically apply to Snapper cards, and Metlink encourages all passengers, especially parents and guardians with children under 13, to make sure their card balances are ‘topped up’ before 1 May.
For more information, and to find your fare, visit: metlink.org.nz/fares