Commuters take advantage of Opal loopholes

COMMUTERS sick of paying too much to travel are using loopholes to evade fares by more than a million dollars—and transport staff are turning a blind eye.

COMMUTERS sick of paying too much to travel are using loopholes to evade fares by more than a million dollars—and transport staff are turning a blind eye.

A loophole in the Opal card system allows users to tap off with a negative balance and then throw the card away — without having to pay the full fare of the trip.

The Sydney rail rort could, at least in part, be stopped by closing the barriers at stations but even commuters underpaying by more than $10 are being let through every time.

More than a year after the NSW Government cracked down on Opal card loopholes that allowed people lower cost or even free travel, canny travellers have still found a way to circumnavigate the system.

The loophole involves tapping off with a negative balance and then throwing away the Opal card.

The loophole is most often abused at Sydney’s airport stations because of the pricey $13.80 gate fees added to rail tickets.

The minimum amount required to tap on during peak is $3.38, which means a trip from Parramatta Station to Domestic Airport, which would normally cost an adult $18.62, could cost just $3.38.

The NSW Audit Office said that last year the number of Opal cards with negative balances increased to 363,000 leaving the government $1.3 million out of pocket. The year before the figure wasn’t even $500,000.

According to a 2016 report from the NSW Audit Office, unregistered Opal cards with negative balances cannot be recovered unless the passenger tops-up the card.

The trick is to use unregistered cards and go into a negative balance.

The report reveals negative balances may not be recovered if customers purchase additional cards and discard the negative balance cards.

Public transport users can tap on so long as they have enough on their cards for the cheapest possible fare — off peak that’s just $2.36. Once they reach their destination they can exit through the gates even if the actual fare was substantially higher.

As Opal cards are free, users can simply throw the card away and start afresh with a new Opal.

NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance has condemned commuters who abuse the loophole, calling it “fare evasion”.

“People should always travel with enough balance to get where they need to go,” Mr Constance said.