Auckland Transport (AT) says fares for some commuters will increase on May 1.
Free travel on AT services for five to 12 year olds and half-price travel for 13 to 24 year olds will end on April 30, in line with the coalition Government’s decision to withdraw funding for these concessions.
The changes will impact about 200,000 of registered HOP card users.
AT’s group manager of growth and optimisation, Richard Harrison, says many under 25’s will qualify for alternative concessions such as child, secondary, tertiary and Community Connect.
“We will automatically transition a customer’s concession to the most beneficial one where we have the necessary data.
“However, there will still be customers who need to reapply, especially those in tertiary education.
“We will be directly contacting impacted customers throughout today with next steps about how they can apply for a new concession, if eligible.”
Harrison says AT investigated continuing the discounts without Government support.
“Our teams did explore whether we could continue the free and half-price travel for young people from within our own budgets.
“With an estimated annual cost to AT of approximately $61.5 million, it was not deemed possible without central Government support.”
Go online to www.at.govt.nz/farechanges for more information.
