Cronulla MP, Malcolm Kerr today called on the Minister for Transport to clarify that the cost of a weekly rail ticket to the City from Cronulla and Woolooware stations under the new Myzone system will not be $10 higher than one to Central or one purchased from neighbouring Caringbah. 

This is because the distance from Cronulla station to the City (38.01k) and Woolooware (36.8) is over the 35k journey zone placing these stations in the MyTrain 4 category.

A spokesperson for the Transport Minister has said that in several cases journeys to Town Hall will fall into a different fare band than those to Central and that this difference is unavoidable in any distance-based system.

The cost of a MyTrain 4 weekly ticket will be $47 the same as the current fare which came into effect on 4 January this year.

However, commuters from Caringbah to the City (34.71k) will pay only $37 for a weekly ticket as Caringbah comes in under the 35k journey zone.

‘A $10 price difference for a weekly ticket from two neighbouring railway stations is quite significant ‘ Mr Kerr said.

‘Commuters from Woolooware and Cronulla should not be discriminated against because of a couple of kilometres under the Myzone system’ Mr Kerr said.

‘It is incomprehensible that just two stations on the end of a railway line should be singled out to go into a higher price zone’

‘$10.00 a week is $520 a year, a large amount of money for those already suffering mortgage stress and increased Government service charges’

‘Residents who live west of  Woolooware station would be able to save themselves $520 a year by going to Caringbah to catch a train’

‘The only other way Cronulla and Woolooware commuters could save this money is to get off at Central (34.8k) and walk’

‘The City Circle has always included the stations of Central, Town Hall, Wynyard, Circular Quay, St James and Museum and continue to do so according to CityRail’s website’.

‘Now apparently CityCircle stations will become a cash cow in the new distance based fare zones’

Mr Kerr called on the Minister for Transport to put an end to this ridiculous situation and amend the distance based fare bands so that unfair $10 fare hikes between neighbouring stations are eliminated.