The staggering amount of money sitting on commuters’ unused Opal cards

More than $143 million is sitting idle on nearly 18 million Opal cards which have not been used in more than a year, prompting NSW transport authorities to urge people to unlock their forgotten monies.

Despite cost-of-living pressures, $119.4 million is on dormant adult Opal cards, $16.3 million on child or youth, and $7.6 million on senior or pensioner cards.

Transport for NSW secretary Josh Murray said there were simple ways to use the money sitting on unused Opal cards such as rolling the balance onto a new card, using it up from the old account, or requesting a refund from the agency.

More than $119 million is sitting on dormant adult Opal cards alone.Credit: Peter Rae

“We want our passengers to know that even if you’re no longer using an old Opal card to tap on and tap off, you should still ‘tap in’ and reactivate or refund your cash,” he said. “Don’t leave hard-earned dollars trapped on unused Opals.”

Murray said there were myriad reasons Opal cards became dormant, ranging from being lost or damaged to being forgotten about.

“There could have been a change in fare entitlement so they’ve moved to a different kind of Opal card such as from a child to an adult card, or from an adult to a seniors card,” he said.

The major change has been Opal card users opting for contactless payments for their trips through their credit and debit cards or digital wallets.

The majority of commuters now tap on and off using credit and debit cards or mobile phones.Credit: Nikki Short

“Over 60 per cent of public transport users on adult fares now tap using credit and debit cards or phones, and that’s seen the dormant dollars left on Opal cards more than double in the last five years,” Murray said.

“The pandemic also saw plenty of people move, change how they travel, or put their cards away somewhere to not be able to find them when they went back to the office. If you registered the card, or have the number, you can still tap into those lost balances.”

Using an Opal app, users can check details online, block any old or lost cards, and transfer the funds to a new one. Passengers can also have their Opal balance refunded via a transfer to an Australian bank account.

More than 34 million Opal cards have been issued since the electronic ticketing system was rolled out in NSW over several years from 2012, ending paper tickets.

The government is working on a project dubbed “Opal Next Gen” to modernise the ageing ticketing system. It will give commuters the option of a digital Opal card on their smartphone, as well as contactless payments regardless of fare type.

The $568 million upgrade of the system involves replacing 25,000 electronic readers on buses, at train stations, light rail stops and ferry wharves.

Concession-card holders make up more than a quarter of trips on NSW’s public transport. At present, those passengers cannot get discounted fares if they use a bank card or contactless payment to tap on to pay.

As part of the Opal Next Gen upgrade, people eligible for a concession fare will be able to get a discount if they use a bank card to tap on at an electronic reader.

Contactless payments were introduced in September 2019. Of the more than 60 per cent of people travelling on adult fares who use contactless payments, nearly three-quarters opt for digital wallets, while the remaining 27 per cent use debit or credit cards.

All funds sitting on Opal cards are stored under government banking arrangements, and any interest earned on them is funnelled back into helping pay for the transport network.

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