Over the years there have been occasions where travelling on Melbourne’s trains have been made free – here is a short list.
Christmas Day and New Years Eve
Travel on trains, trams and buses has been free in Victoria on Christmas Day and New Years Eve for many years.
The first reference I can find is in 1999, followed by Christmas Day 2004, an ING Direct sponsorship for New Years Eve 2004, and an expansion to V/Line in 2006. 2007 marked straight straight years of free travel, and in 2009 the practice was written into the new train contract.
2008: Connex screw up
On 6 November 2008 an electrical fault brought the Melbourne train network to a halt in the middle of peak hour, resulting in Oaks Day race patrons spilling out onto the tracks.
With embattled Melbourne rail operator Connex then in the process of trying to keep it’s $600 million-a-year contract to run the network, they issued a desperate mea culpa, and offered free travel to anyone with a ticket to the Stakes Day race meeting held on 8 November 2008.
2009: Summer heat cripples the rail network
In January 2009 a heatwave hit Melbourne, crippling a railway network held together with duct tape and bubble gum, and leading to a week of service cancellations – culminating in 200 trains cancelled on Wednesday 28th, over 300 services on Thursday 29th, and 284 on Friday 30th. The state government’s solution – declaring 30 January 2009 a day of free travel.
2010: New rail operator, same problems
Metro Trains Melbourne might taken over from Connex as the operator of trains in Melbourne, but the network was still falling apart – an example being 27 July 2010 when a faulty overhead wire cut power between Southern Cross and Flinders Street stations, severely limiting the amount of trains that could move through that section, and causing crowds across the network.
As a result the state government decided that Friday 30 July 2010 would be a day of free travel across Melbourne.
2016: now V/Line screws up
In January 2016 V/Line discovered major issues with their fleet of VLocity trains, resulting in dozens of cancelled services each day, and the crush loading of the trains that are running. Here is a selection of photos from the period.
To compensate for the disruptions to services, in V/Line declared free travel on all services from January 23 to 31, but with no resolution in sight, it was extended another week until February 7.
2018: buying votes in south-east Melbourne
In the lead up to the 2018 state election, Premier Daniel Andrews announced free travel on replacement buses for passengers on the Cranbourne, Pakenham and Gippsland lines during first three weeks of December, while works were completed on the ‘Skyrail’ level crossing removal project.
Passengers given given ‘free travel tokens’ to identify themselves to station staff.
2019: pissed off Gippsland passengers
Level crossing removals followed by Metro Tunnel works and signalling upgrades in suburban Melbourne saw V/Line passengers from Gippsland put onto buses for months on end, so to ease the pain the government gave them free travel on the replacement buses in January 2019, April 2019, July 2019 and January 2020.
2023: we forgot to install the ticketing equipment
In April 2023 a brand new station opened at Deer Park following the removal of the level crossing, but one thing was missing – the Myki equipment!
And their solution – hand out ‘Free travel from Deer Park station until 7 May 2023’ flyers to every passenger using the station, with a second bath of flyers printed up before the Myki equipment was finally switched on from Tuesday 23 May.
Free travel on New Years’ Eve is logical for free travel on public transport (as it may be logistically impossible due to the large number that travel on New Years’ Eve, and it is only for 12 hours from 6pm New Years Eve to 6am New Years’ Day), and I think Christmas Day, fares should be donated to charity (like a Gold Coin donation for example), but apart from that, there should be no free travel. Saying that, many replacement buses are not myki-enabled, so there is free travel there (many of the operators that are the source of replacement buses don’t run revenue service, hene no mykis). In this case, it is okay.
I remember V/Line offering free travel vouchers for LaTrobe Valley residents in 2014 during the Hazelwwood mine fire. It’s mentioned in this article: http://hazelwoodinquiry.archive.vic.gov.au/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/DOH.0005.002.0011.pdf
I think in practice replacement buses and coaches are free but you are supposed to touch on and off at the station at either end – but it wouldn’t be a good look to send the Authorised Officers onto the replacement buses so therefore no enforcement. Most rail replacement stops are nowhere near the station (or at least the Myki reader) or the station is closed – Frankston line for example – so why would you bother. Even V/Line don’t bother – when they could touch you on with their normal portable readers at a staffed point like Geelong.
Actually had an interesting experience with a conductor checking my Myki on a train recently – touched on at Geelong and had my Myki checked on the train, but when I tried to touch off at my destination (in this case I was getting off at Caulfield, having changed internally at Southern Cross) I couldn’t get through the barrier. I looked back at my Myki history later, and it appears that my Myki must’ve been touched off by the conductor, since it wasn’t me that touched off at Corio!
Anecdotally I think V/Line check Mykis much less frequently now than they did pre-COVID.
True. When it comes to V/Line, when it came to my experience, they do check Myki or paper ticket after leaving Southern Cross, and whether the train goes beyond the Myki border (I remember when I went to Ararat once, they checked the tickets after leaving Southern Cross and after leaving Wendouree as that was the last station which could be used with Myki and it was a paper ticket only area).