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114-413: In Australia, urban transport is primarily the responsibility of the state and territory governments. Transport was a major issue in the lead up to the 2011 New South Wales state election . The incumbent NSW Labor government's management of public transport was perceived as poor and a succession of infrastructure projects that were announced and then abandoned proved politically damaging. The election saw

228-564: A governor , appointed by the monarch (currently King Charles III ), which by convention he does on the advice of the state premier. The Administrator of the Northern Territory, by contrast, is appointed by the governor-general . The Australian Capital Territory has neither a governor nor an administrator. Instead, since the enacted of the Australian Capital Territory (Self-Government) Act 1988 (Cth) ,

342-648: A mainland coastline of 32,994 kilometres (20,502 mi) and claims an exclusive economic zone of about 8,200,000 square kilometres (3,200,000 sq mi). At Federation in 1901, what is now the Northern Territory was within South Australia, what are now the Australian Capital Territory and Jervis Bay Territory were within New South Wales, and Coral Sea Islands was part of Queensland. Ashmore and Cartier Islands

456-475: A trip is a single unit of travel, from tap on to tap off; a journey is a collection of at least 1 trip taken within a short space of time of each other. Trips will be counted as one journey if a passenger taps on for a new trip within 1 hour of tapping off from their previous trip (on the Manly ferry the time limit is 130 minutes from tap on). Trips are used to calculate fares. Fares for consecutive trips involving

570-621: A RailCorp employee alleged to have leaked tender secrets to Cubic. Ruling against Cubic in 2002, the NSW Supreme Court judge Michael Adams found it was ''guilty of reprehensible conduct'' and had shown a ''lack of good faith and positive dishonesty'' in the tender process. The development and rollout of the system was beset with difficulties, leading the government to terminate the contract in November 2007. The government sued ERG for $ 77 million who counter sued for $ 215m. The claim

684-480: A class of 55 four-car trains that primarily operate on intercity services but are sometimes also used on suburban services. They entered service between 2006 and 2012. The Waratahs or A sets are a class of 78 eight-car trains that operate on the suburban network. The trains entered service between 2011 and 2014. These were the first trains in Sydney to be configured as eight-car rather than four-car sets. Originally,

798-551: A contiguous residential of Queanbeyan , was excised out of New South Wales when the Australian Capital Territory was established in 1909. Some Urban Centres and Localities reported by the Australian Bureau of Statistics include some agglomerations of cities spreading across state borders, including Gold Coast –Tweed Heads, Canberra –Queanbeyan, Albury – Wodonga (New South Wales-Victoria) and Mildura – Wentworth (Victoria-New South Wales) Opal card Opal

912-491: A credit or debit card, allowing users to top up their balance online or by phone. When linked to a credit or debit card, Opal cards can be configured to automatically top up the balance when it falls below a pre-set amount (auto top up), currently $ 10. Over 350 top up machines are installed at railway stations, light rail stops and ferry wharves throughout the Opal area. The first generation machines can only provide top ups with

1026-474: A debit or credit card. Second generation machines provide top ups and can also sell single trip tickets. There are two types of second-generation machines – the difference between the types is the ability to accept cash in addition to electronic payment. On 11 March 2015, the first top up machines became available at the recently opened Edmondson Park and Leppington railway stations. This had been extended to nearly 100 stations and wharves by July 2015. In 2016,

1140-477: A discount has applied when changing modes during a journey, other than metro/train which are treated as the same mode. In 2014, the government stated that when the CBD and South East Light Rail opened in 2019, passengers would pay a single fare for a journey involving the use of both light rail and buses, however this was before the introduction of the transfer discount and ultimately not implemented. Previously once

1254-643: A green tick is shown. Non-adult Opal cards have their own distinct 'ding' when tapping on or off, in addition to having a light mounted atop a train station or ferry wharf barrier lit up, allowing for Transport Officers and police to identify and enforce correct fares. The design of the cigar-shaped Opal poles won the Transport category of the Sydney Design Awards, the Australian International Design Award and

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1368-402: A journey count of eight was reached during the week (Monday to Sunday), travel was free for the remainder of the week. This discount was changed to half-price travel on 5 September 2016 and removed altogether on 16 October 2023. When an Opal customer completes eight trips on the same mode of transport (even within the 1-hour transfer), a new journey commences. The number of trips required to force

1482-566: A loop line between the Central Business District and Darling Harbour, shared an ownership and operational structure with the light rail. The government saw the monorail as an impediment to the redevelopment of the Darling Harbour area. Opening in 1988, the monorail was built as a response to an earlier redevelopment of Darling Harbour from a port to a leisure precinct. The monorail ceased operating on 30 June 2013 and

1596-608: A number of caps to reduce the cost for frequent travellers: Other key discounts include: Fares have increased on the first Monday in July (although October in 2023) generally matching inflation, but with some adjustment from government directives. The caps for Senior/Pensioner cards, the transfer discount and the Weekly caps (since introduced) have not changed since 2016. Being a distance-based system, Opal users are required to tap on on all modes & tap off on all modes (apart from

1710-832: A physical card. This is available for Adult Opal fares only, initially on Apple and Samsung devices with Android 8.0 or later, with Google devices to be added at a later date. The trial which will run for 12 months, is limited to 10,000 users. It could not be used on OpalPay services or park & ride. The trial ended, with all trial cards disabled and refunded, on 12 December 2021. When originally launched, adult cards were scheduled to expire after nine years. This has since been extended to 12 years. Opal integrates ticketing on all modes of public transport; however, it does not fully integrate fares. The fare types for reusable cards and contactless payments are metro/train, bus/light rail and ferry. All modes except ferries offer separate peak period and off-peak fares. All fares are calculated based on

1824-583: A possible 28 additional sets to the ordered at a future date. A technology upgrade of the Tangara trains was announced in August 2015. The program will extend the life of these trains (which were introduced in the late 1980s and early 1990s) and bring technology into line with newer trains. The contract was awarded to UGL Limited . The program is expected to be completed in 2019. 22 six-car Alstom Metropolis trains were put into service in 2019. These operate on

1938-750: A state or internal territory. Excluding the Heard Island and McDonald Islands and the Australian Antarctic Territory (which are governed by the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water ), the external territories are governed by the federal Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts . Norfolk Island had its own legislature from 1979 to 2015. Each state

2052-447: Is a contactless smartcard fare collection system for public transport services in the greater Sydney area. Operation of the Opal system is managed by Transport for NSW . First launched in late 2012, Opal is valid on Transport for NSW's metro, train, bus, ferry and light rail services that operate in Sydney and the neighbouring Central Coast , Hunter Region , Blue Mountains , Illawarra and Southern Highlands areas. Opal equipment

2166-760: Is a 9-kilometre (5.6 mi) motorway tunnel in the northern suburbs. Opened 31 October 2020, it connects the M1 Pacific Motorway to the M2 Hills Motorway . NorthConnex links to the Sydney Orbital Network and forms part of the National Highway route. Major construction began in mid-2015 and completed in late 2020. The tunnel will provide an alternative to Pennant Hills Road . In 2013 National Roads and Motorists' Association members identified Pennant Hills Road as

2280-544: Is a new passenger railway that serves the city's "South West Growth Centre". It diverges from the existing network at Glenfield and runs to Leppington. An intermediate station serves Edmondson Park. The line opened 8 February 2015. The railway was integrated with the T2 Inner West & South Line in December 2015, replacing the initial shuttle service between Leppington and Liverpool. A new Sydney Trains timetable

2394-547: Is a successor to historical British colonies , and each has its own constitution. The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and Northern Territory for the most part operate indistinguishably from the states (for example, both have representation in the Parliament since 1948 and in the Senate since 1975), even though they do not have constitutional status as states and territorial legislation can be overridden. Surrounded by

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2508-476: Is called the "legislative assembly", except in South Australia and Tasmania, where it is called the "house of assembly". Tasmania is the only state to use proportional representation for elections to its lower house; all others elect members from single member constituencies, using preferential voting . The upper house is called the "legislative council" and is generally elected from multi-member constituencies using proportional representation. Along with Queensland,

2622-681: Is currently set at its original level of 30%. It was temporarily increased to 50% between 6 July and 5 October 2020. Peak times were originally between 07:00 to 09:00 (for Sydney Trains stations), 06:00 to 08:00 (for most intercity stations) and 16:00 to 18:30 (for all stations) on weekdays. Even earlier peak times applied at certain intercity stations located very far from Sydney. Peak times were widened to (6:00 for intercity stations) 6:30 to 10:00 and 15:00 to 19:00 on weekdays on 6 July 2020. Transport Officers and NSW Police, who randomly patrol services, are equipped with portable card readers and mobile phone based readers. Fares are categorised in two ways:

2736-967: Is provided to students with entitlements to free transport to/from school under the School Student Transport Scheme. Owing to the light rail's heritage as a privately run enterprise, free travel for school students was traditionally not available on this mode. The School Opal was introduced on light rail from July 2016. A grey Opal card is available for holders of a free travel Vision Impaired Person's Travel Pass. The card can be used to open ticket gates at stations and ferry wharves without requiring staff assistance. Employee cards are used by certain public service employees (e.g. Police, Sydney Trains staff) entitled to free travel on some or all public transport services. Prior to June 2021, employee cards were grey. Non-reusable (single trip) Opal tickets were introduced on 1 August 2016, replacing all remaining paper tickets. These are only valid on

2850-910: The Australian Capital Territory , the Jervis Bay Territory , and the Northern Territory on the Australian mainland ; and seven are external territories : the Ashmore and Cartier Islands , the Australian Antarctic Territory , Christmas Island , the Cocos (Keeling) Islands , the Coral Sea Islands , Heard Island and McDonald Islands , and Norfolk Island that are offshore dependent territories . Every state and internal territory (except

2964-501: The Australian Capital Territory , which collectively forms 79% of the entire population of Australia (more than three-quarters of all Australians). Most of the major population centres are located east and south of the Great Dividing Range on the coastal plains and their associated hinterland regions. The states originated as separate British colonies prior to Federation in 1901. The Colony of New South Wales

3078-574: The Colony of Western Australia (initially established as the smaller Swan River Colony in 1829), the Province of South Australia (1836), the Colony of New Zealand (1840), the Victoria Colony (1851) and the Colony of Queensland (1859). Upon federation, the six colonies of New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, and Tasmania became the founding states of

3192-658: The Division of Fraser until 2016) in the ACT and by the ACT's two senators. In other respects, the territory is administered directly by the Federal Government through the Territories portfolio. The external territory of Norfolk Island possessed a degree of self-government from 1979 until 2015. Each state has a bicameral parliament, except Queensland, which abolished its upper house in 1922. The lower house

3306-528: The Federal Parliament can override territorial legislation. The federal High Court of Australia acts as a final court of appeal for all matters, and has the authority to override any state judiciary. While all states and internal territories have their own judicial system (subject to appeal to the High Court), most external territories are subject to the judiciary and legislature of either

3420-645: The German New Guinea . Following World War I , the Australian government received a League of Nations mandate for Nauru . After World War II, the Territory of Papua, Territory of New Guinea and Nauru were all controlled by the Australian government as United Nations trust territories . Nauru was granted independence in 1968. The majority of Australians live in the eastern coastal mainland states of New South Wales , Queensland , Victoria , and

3534-775: The Indian , Pacific , and Southern oceans, Australia is separated from Maritime Southeast Asia and New Guinea by the Arafura Sea , the Timor Sea , and the Torres Strait , from Island Melanesia by the Coral Sea , and from New Zealand by the Tasman Sea . The world's smallest continent , Australia is also the sixth-largest country by land area and sometimes considered the world's largest island . Australia has

Transport in Sydney in the 2010s - Misplaced Pages Continue

3648-750: The Neutral Bay to Circular Quay ferry service in late 2012 and was completed two years later when the Inner West Light Rail was added to the network. During this period, Opal was progressively rolled out to all ferry services operating under a New South Wales Government service contract, Sydney suburban and intercity train services, all bus services operating under a Metropolitan or Outer Metropolitan service contract and on Sydney's light rail line. Single trip ticket machines were rolled-out during 2016. Opal replaced all pre-existing paper tickets, with these tickets being withdrawn in stages, with

3762-564: The Sydney Metro network and are single deck, in contrast to the double deck suburban trains. Sydney's original light rail line, the Inner West Light Rail , was delivered as a public-private partnership. The private owner, Sydney Light Rail Company , was awarded a 30.5-year concession, allowing it to operate the line until February 2028, when ownership would pass to the New South Wales Government. The contract gave

3876-703: The Western Sydney centre of Parramatta . The first line runs from Carlingford to Westmead via the Parramatta CBD. It includes the conversion of most of the underused existing heavy rail Carlingford line to light rail standards. Construction is expected to begin in 2018 and be completed by 2023. States and territories of Australia The states and territories are the second level of government of Australia . The states are partially sovereign , administrative divisions that are self-governing polities , having ceded some sovereign rights to

3990-513: The south-eastern suburbs . Major construction began in October 2015. The line was initially projected to open in early 2019. However, the project was extensively delayed, with the line between Circular Quay and Randwick opened on 14 December 2019 and the rest of the stops on the Kingsford branch to open March 2020. Parramatta Light Rail is the name given to two planned lines that converge on

4104-506: The 16-year-Labor government defeated in a landslide by the Liberal–National Coalition . The Coalition retained power in the 2015 election and the 2019 election . The following individuals have served as Premier or Transport Minister during the decade: Transport for NSW is a statutory authority of the New South Wales Government that manages transport services in the state. It was established on 1 November 2011. The authority

4218-837: The Australian Constitution the federal Parliament has plenary power to make laws for all territories including all external territories. The Cocos (Keeling) Islands voted for integration in 1984. Together with Christmas Island, these two territories comprise the Australian Indian Ocean Territories . Commonwealth laws apply automatically to the territories unless expressly stated otherwise and residents of both external territories are associated with Northern Territory for federal elections. They are, thus, constitutionally part of Australia. The Heard Island and McDonald Islands, although uninhabited, are treated as constitutionally part of Australia by

4332-561: The Australian Government announced funding for the Inland Rail project. This new route will provide a bypass of Sydney for trains connecting with Brisbane from Perth, Adelaide and Melbourne and will result in reduced growth in the number of freight trains passing through Sydney. The decade has seen work begin on the long-planned North West Rail Link . The line was initially planned as a main line railway integrated with

4446-517: The Australian federal government under Section 122 of the Constitution of Australia no longer exist: Two present-day Oceanic countries, Papua New Guinea (PNG) and Nauru , were administered by the federal government of Australia as de facto or de jure external territories for differing periods between 1902 and 1975. Following World War II , the Papua and New Guinea Act 1949 placed

4560-611: The Concession Opal, students must be enrolled full-time at a participating institution. Students need to give consent for their institution to share enrolment details with Transport for NSW. As of 14 June 2015 the cards were available for students at over 80 institutions. The Concession Opal became available to eligible NSW job seekers from 29 June 2015. There are a number of cards that do not have any stored value for individuals with free travel entitlements. These cards are plastic MIFARE Ultralight C cards. The School card

4674-468: The F1 Manly Ferry) to ensure the correct fare is charged. If a user only taps at one end of their journey, a default fare will be charged, corresponding to the maximum fare on that mode of travel. However, a lower default fare applies if it is not possible to reach the maximum fare on the route for which the tap on took place. If the user fails to tap off, the default fare is charged after exceeding

Transport in Sydney in the 2010s - Misplaced Pages Continue

4788-579: The Jervis Bay Territory) is self-governing with its own independent executive government , legislative branch , and judicial system , while the rest only have local government status overseen by federal departments . State and territory governments may legislate on matters concerning their citizens, subject to the limits of the federal constitution (notably section 51 and section 109 ). Each state and internal territory (except Jervis Bay Territory) has its own legislature , although

4902-542: The M4 and M5. The initial M4 widening and King Georges Road Interchange Upgrades began construction in 2015 and were completed in 2017. The M4 East was completed in July 2019, and the New M5 Tunnel is due for completion in 2020 respectively. The final stages, M4–M5 link, Iron Cove Link and Sydney Gateway, are expected to begin construction in 2019 and be completed by 2023. The Western Harbour Tunnel and Beaches Link

5016-566: The NSW Government revealed the cancellation of the entire Sydney Metro project in its Metropolitan Transport Plan and returned to the North West Rail Link main line rail proposal. Following his victory in the 2011 state election, newly elected Premier Barry O'Farrell announced that his first order of business would be to start construction on the North West Rail Link. The new government had originally intended to maintain

5130-487: The North Shore line. The government's solution was to announce a major extension of the metro project. Sydney Metro City & Southwest is a 30-kilometre extension from Chatswood to Bankstown. The link will include a new tunnel that begins at Chatswood, travels down the lower North Shore, under Sydney Harbour, through the Sydney central business district and emerges at Sydenham. The extension will then take over most of

5244-598: The Princes Motorway and the Orbital Network. In 2017, it was revealed that the state government had reviewed a 3.6 billion dollar train tunnel between Thirroul and Waterfall on the South Coast Line that could reduce travel time between Sydney and Wollongong by 22 minutes, but the government favoured improving and extending the motorway instead. Later in 2017, a state government leak showed

5358-533: The Sydney suburban network that took place in the second half of the 2000s and the first half of the 2010s. The following projects were completed in the 2010s: With all but one of the Rail Clearways projects completed, a new timetable was released in October 2013. The new timetable saw the introduction of line numbers to the Sydney Trains network and the rationalisation of lines. The Bankstown loop –

5472-464: The Territory of New Guinea in an "administrative union" with the Territory of Papua, and the combined Territory of Papua and New Guinea was created. However, both territories remained technically distinct for some administrative and legal purposes, until 1975, when the combined entity eventually was given independence as Papua New Guinea. Nauru was previously under the German colonial empire as part of

5586-941: The Waratahs were intended to replace all 498 S set carriages, but in February 2013 it was revealed that some S sets would still be required to provide services on the South West Rail Link. An option existed to extend the order, but in March 2013 the government indicated it would not take this up. Instead, in May 2014, the government announced its intention to purchase new trains for the NSW TrainLink intercity network. These new trains are expected to enter service in late 2019 and will release at least some OSCARS from intercity to Sydney Trains services. Despite proceeding with

5700-569: The Western Sydney Airport Motorway as part of the 2014–2015 State Budget. Other WSIP projects include the upgrade, road widening, and partial realignment of The Northern Road between South Penrith and Narellan . A northern extension the Princes Motorway (F6) is being considered. The motorway links Sydney and Wollongong and currently ends in Sydney's southern suburbs. As part of modifications made during

5814-456: The airport, before continuing on to the "Badgerys Creek Aerotropolis", an area south of the airport. Funding for the line will be split 50:50 between the governments. The line is likely to be a metro or light metro . The decade has seen the delivery of the OSCAR and Waratah classes and planned introduction of a new Waratah-based suburban class and trains for the metro. The OSCARS or H sets are

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5928-420: The bus itself. The rollout of Opal technology has seen a new style of gates introduced at a number of major stations. When tapping on or off, all readers display the current balance of the card or an error message if the tap failed to work. Tap offs also display the fare deducted for the trip. A trip that is part of an existing journey will display "transfer" when tapping on. For contactless cards and school cards

6042-413: The central government. Norfolk Island's status is controversial, with the present (as of 2018 ) government taking measures to integrate the territory into Australia proper (including representation in parliament and compulsory voting). The Norfolk Islanders have not formally consented to this change in constitutional status and assert that they are not Australian. Two internal territories established by

6156-482: The company significant control over the commercial arrangements relating to future extensions or interconnecting lines. The government purchased the company in March 2012, removing the contractual restrictions on expanding the light rail network. Another motivation for the purchase was the government's desire to redevelop the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre at Darling Harbour. The Sydney Monorail ,

6270-552: The contract to deliver the project. On 12 April 2010, the state government announced that a new contract had been awarded for the second attempt to introduce a smartcard system. The new system, called Opal , was introduced between December 2012 and December 2014. Once the rollout was complete, Opal quickly started replacing all other tickets. The pre-existing tickets were retired in stages; the last remaining tickets were withdrawn on 1 August 2016. At this time, single trip Opal tickets were introduced for infrequent travellers. NorthConnex

6384-487: The creation of a new journey was increased from four trips to eight trips in March 2016 to reduce the number of short trips made simply to complete a journey and reach the journey limit. Placing money onto an Opal card is known as topping up . As of January 2016, there are over 2,000 Opal card retailers that provide top up services across New South Wales. There are also top up machines at railway stations, light rail stops, and ferry wharves. Opal cards may also be linked to

6498-424: The day of purchase for a single trip only, and only two ticket types are available: Adult and Child/Youth. Single ticket prices are significantly higher than the applicable fare on a reloadable card to discourage their use. Single trip tickets can be bought from top up machines at most train stations, ferry wharves and light rail stops. Tickets issued from these machines are cardboard MIFARE Ultralight C cards. In

6612-413: The day-to-day compliance and safety for roads and waterways, and vehicle and license registrations. As part of the 2011 reforms that established Transport for NSW, Roads & Maritime Services (RMS) was created as a new agency of the New South Wales Government. It was responsible for building and maintaining road infrastructure and managing the day-to-day compliance and safety for roads and waterways. It

6726-415: The different modes of transport, a complex fare structure and excluded private operators. By being limited to the services provided by the government agencies, most bus services in the outer western, northern and southern parts of Sydney, plus all bus services of the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, and Illawarra regions were excluded from the system. A unified brand for the majority of public transport tickets

6840-535: The distance travelled and are for single trips only. Opal's non-reusable single trip tickets use the same mode groupings as the standard fares but offer no off-peak fares and are more expensive than the equivalent standard fare. The following tables list Opal fares: ^ = $ 2.50 cap applies for Senior/Pensioner cardholders A surcharge is levied when using the two privately operated stations serving Sydney Airport : As there are no return or periodical options available, reusable Opal cards and contactless payments include

6954-439: The existing infrastructure by providing another harbour crossing. The New South Wales Government pledged $ 77 million in funding to evaluate the design and construction feasibility of the project. In 2014, federal government and the New South Wales state government jointly funded the Western Sydney Infrastructure Plan (WSIP), a road investment program consisting of key road upgrade projects in Western Sydney . Included in

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7068-431: The extent of the route. Works would include tunnels to the northern side of the Captain Cook Bridge and a bridge duplication allowing for motorway traffic to use the existing bridge and local traffic to keep access. To the south of the bridge, a surface motorway would run through current parks and reserves which had been left for the original route, then run along the route of the current Princes Highway with tunnels bypassing

7182-676: The federal government. They have their own constitutions , legislatures , executive governments , judiciaries and law enforcement agencies that administer and deliver public policies and programs. Territories can be autonomous and administer local policies and programs much like the states in practice, but are still legally subordinate to the federal government. Australia has six federated states : New South Wales (including Lord Howe Island ), Queensland , South Australia , Tasmania (including Macquarie Island ), Victoria , and Western Australia . Australia also has ten federal territories , out of which three are internal territories :

7296-562: The first time. Opal retailers have distributed unregistered Adult and Child/Youth cards since 10 August 2014. The Senior/Pensioner card was made available for ordering online or by phone on 3 November 2014. Between 11 November and 5 December 2014, temporary kiosks were set up at shopping centres to allow seniors and pensioners to order their Opal cards. The Concession card is available to eligible apprentices, trainees, tertiary students and job seekers. Concession cards became available to tertiary students on 2 February 2015. To be eligible for

7410-444: The functions of the head of the Executive – commissioning government, proroguing parliament and enacting legislation – are exercised by the Assembly itself and by the chief minister . Jervis Bay Territory is the only non-self-governing internal territory. Until 1989, it was administered as if it were a part of the ACT, although it has always been a separate territory. Under the terms of the Jervis Bay Territory Acceptance Act 1915 ,

7524-462: The governor will appoint as premier whoever leads the party or coalition which exercises control of the lower house (in the case of Queensland, the only house) of the state parliament. However, in times of constitutional crisis , the governor can appoint someone else as premier. The head of government of the self-governing internal territories is called the "chief minister". The Northern Territory's chief minister, in normal circumstances whoever controls

7638-435: The intercity train order, the New South Wales Government announced on 1 December 2016 that 24 new suburban trains had been ordered. Known as series 2 Waratahs or B sets, the trains share more than 90 percent of their design with the original Waratahs. The first trains entered service in late 2018 and the last by the end of June 2019 allowing the last S set to be withdrawn on 28 June 2019. A further 17 sets have been ordered with

7752-423: The interwoven operation of the Bankstown and Inner West lines – was broken by terminating trains at Lidcombe and Homebush. Almost all Liverpool via Regents Park services were discontinued. The Cumberland line was extended to Schofields and its operating hours were increased. The Northern line was merged with the North Shore and Western lines. The Airport & East Hills and South lines merged and were joined with what

7866-469: The journey details to be recorded and the appropriate fare deducted from the stored value on the card. Passengers 'tap on' and 'tap off' any services whenever they travel through the public transport network. Opal cards can also be used to pay for fares on selected third party transport services via a facility known as OpalPay . After a gradual rollout from 2017, the Opal system has accepted contactless payment via credit and debit card and linked devices with

7980-408: The laws of the ACT apply to the Jervis Bay Territory insofar as they are applicable and providing they are not inconsistent with an ordinance. Although residents of the Jervis Bay Territory are generally subject to laws made by the ACT Legislative Assembly, they are not represented in the assembly. They are represented in the Parliament of Australia as part of the Electoral Division of Fenner (named

8094-651: The legislative assembly, is appointed by the administrator. The term interstate is used within Australia to refer to a number of events, transactions, registrations, travel, etc. which occurs across borders or outside of the particular state or territory of the user of the term. Examples of use include motor vehicle registration, travel, applications to educational institutions out of one's home state. There are very few urban areas bifurcated by state or territory borders. The Queensland-New South Wales border runs through Coolangatta (Queensland) and Tweed Heads (New South Wales) and splits Gold Coast Airport . Oaks Estate ,

8208-422: The light rail required manual checking or validation of the ticket by the driver or conductor. The magnetic-stripe system was introduced in 1992 and had come to be seen as out-of-date. Tcard was a failed attempt to introduce an inter-modal stored-value smart card . Though originally intended to be in place before the 2000 Sydney Olympics , the project suffered major delays. In 2007, the state government terminated

8322-693: The line. The late night services extend to Richmond, replacing T1 services at these times. These changes mean the section of the network between Glenfield and Macarthur is served exclusively by services operating via the East Hills railway line . Central and Berowra via Gordon.      Central and Hornsby via Macquarie Park.      Central and Emu Plains, Richmond or Epping via Strathfield. The Epping to Chatswood railway line closed in September 2018 to enable its conversion to metro standards. This resulted in

8436-575: The main line Bankstown railway line. The project is due to be completed in 2024. A second metro line was announced in November 2016. Sydney Metro West will travel from the central business district to Parramatta. Planning for the line is at an extremely early stage. The line is expected to open in the second half of the 2020s. A rail link to the Western Sydney Airport was announced by the New South Wales and Australian governments in March 2018. This line would run south from St Marys to

8550-485: The maximum journey time (5 hours for most train trips) or when tapping on at a gated station for the next journey. Users do not need to tap off on the F1 Manly Ferry, as the fare is charged when tapping on. An off-peak discount applies to encourage travel outside of peak times. This discount originally only applied to train trips only, but from 6 July 2020, it was enabled on bus and light rail as well. The discount

8664-480: The new Commonwealth of Australia. The two territory governments (the Australian Capital Territory [ACT] and the Northern Territory [NT]), were created by legislation of the Federal Parliament—the NT in 1978 and the ACT in 1988. The legislative powers of the states are protected by the Australian constitution , section 107, and under the principle of federalism , Commonwealth legislation only applies to

8778-465: The operators of the services. The authority now manages the route design, timetabling and branding of these services and also provides passenger information via printed material, a telephone service and a website. Operation of the services is contracted out to a mixture of other government-owned organisations and private enterprise. The organisation worked to provide more unified branding of public transport services. A new series of logos, dubbed "the hop",

8892-535: The past, single trip tickets were also available on buses. These were simply thermal paper receipts and did not need to be validated. As with prior to Opal, these tickets were not available on PrePay routes or stops. Starting in 2018, PrePay routes became known as 'Opal only' routes and many more routes became designated as 'Opal only', with no tickets sold on board. All remaining routes became Opal only on 25 March 2020 due to COVID concerns. A trial supporting direct contactless payments from debit and credit cards

9006-630: The phone. Adult and Child/Youth cards are also available from retail outlets, such as convenience stores, newsagents, supermarkets and at Service NSW centres. The Adult fare card was the first card to be released, becoming available in December 2012. On 6 April 2014, the Child/Youth card was made available. These cards had to be ordered either online or over the phone. From 28 July until the end of September 2014, temporary kiosks were set up at major railway stations and shopping centres, as unregistered Adult and Child/Youth cards were made available for

9120-679: The plan is the Western Sydney Airport Motorway , a planned east-west motorway along the current alignment of Elizabeth Drive between the Westlink M7 Motorway and The Northern Road . The four-lane motorway is planned to be 14 km long and to be built at a cost of $ 1.25 billion. It is aimed at providing direct access from the Westlink M7 to the new Western Sydney Airport at Badgerys Creek. The NSW Government announced $ 6 million for planning

9234-521: The plan to build the line as a main line railway, but in 2012 it decided to switch the project back to a metro line. The Epping to Chatswood railway line will also be converted to metro standards. The line, now known as Sydney Metro Northwest, opened 26 May 2019 and was Australia's first metro line. The decision to build the line as a metro meant passengers travelling to and from the Sydney central business district are required to change trains at Chatswood. This would be inconvenient and would place pressure on

9348-643: The planning stage of the WestConnex project, stub tunnels will be added to the M8 tunnel to allow for an extension connection to it by the F6 extension. In June 2016 Roads & Maritime Services commenced geotechnical analysis to determine underground rock and soil conditions on the former F6 corridor from Waterfall to the Sydney Orbital Network at Rockdale with a view into developing a possible link between

9462-504: The process completed on 1 August 2016: The Opal network comprises: Opal will also be accepted on the Parramatta Light Rail network when it opens. Reusable Opal cards come in five different types, each with their own colour. These are: Adult (black), Child/Youth (green), Senior/Pensioner (gold), Concession (silver), Employee (blue) and School (light blue). Reusable Opal cards can be ordered online or over

9576-593: The reintroduction of the traditional Northern Line route from Hornsby to the city via Strathfield, by extending the Epping branch of the line back to Hornsby . This route was eventually made a separate T9 route in April 2019. The Metro North West Line began service one month later on 26 May 2019 when the Sydney Metro Northwest opened. The Southern Sydney Freight Line is a freight-only relief line in

9690-694: The rest of the Sydney suburban network, but in March 2008 the Government changed the project to a metro line dubbed the North West Metro and expanded the line to run all the way to the Sydney CBD via Drummoyne and Pyrmont . In October 2008, the NSW Government announced that the North West Metro would be indefinitely deferred due to budgetary cuts. In February 2010, two and a half months after Kristina Keneally had become Premier,

9804-530: The same fare structure as those operated by the State Transit Authority . Limited integration with the then privately owned light rail system was added in 2011. The number of fare bands was reduced, which provided some commuters with substantial price cuts for public transport. Like the previous ticketing range, MyZone used the existing magnetic-stripe Automated Fare Collection system on trains, government buses and ferries. Private bus services and

9918-626: The same fares and benefits as an adult Opal card since 2019. Sydney has used a number of automated ticketing systems since the opening of the Eastern Suburbs Railway in June 1979. The Sydney Automated Fare Collection System (AFC) was rolled out across all government-run CityRail (train) and State Transit Authority (bus and ferry) services in Greater Sydney between 1988 and 1993. The system featured loose integration between

10032-542: The same mode of transport are combined so the passenger is charged as if they have taken just one trip, from its origin to ultimate destination – this is known as Trip Advantage. Journeys involving transfers between modes generally attract separate fares for each mode. The exception is the Stockton ferry in Newcastle, which is classified as a bus. A journey can consist of a maximum of eight trips. Since 5 September 2016,

10146-431: The second generation machines are being installed with 58 of the credit card only and 118 of the cash and credit card machines installed as at 23 June 2016. Opal readers are used to tap on or off. They are installed atop existing ticket barriers, or mounted on a stand-alone pole at railway stations, light rail stops or ferry wharves, or integrated into light or power poles. Buses are the exception, with readers installed on

10260-452: The shared passenger and freight route between Sydney and Maitland. It included two projects within Sydney. A new underpass at North Strathfield removes the need for freight trains to switch tracks, which blocked passenger trains in the process. A third track between Epping and Thornleigh provides an additional overtaking opportunity for northbound trains on this steeply graded section. The projects were completed by mid-2016. In its 2017 budget,

10374-705: The south-western suburbs. It runs parallel to the Main South line and was constructed to avoid a curfew for freight trains that restricts them from operating in the suburban area during peak hours. The line forms part of a dedicated freight only corridor between Macarthur and Port Botany . The line is managed by the Australian Rail Track Corporation , while the adjacent passenger lines are managed by Sydney Trains. The line commenced operations in late 2012. The stage 1 Northern Sydney Freight Corridor projects provided increased capacity along

10488-729: The states where permitted by the constitution. The territories, by contrast, are from a constitutional perspective directly subject to the Commonwealth government ; laws for territories are determined by the Australian Parliament. Most of the territories are directly administered by the Commonwealth government, while two (the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory) have some degree of self-government although less than that of

10602-412: The states. In the self-governing territories, the Australian Parliament retains the full power to legislate, and can override laws made by the territorial institutions, which it has done on rare occasions. For the purposes of Australian (and joint Australia-New Zealand) intergovernmental bodies, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory are treated as if they were states. Each state has

10716-434: The suburbs of Heathcote and Waterfall before joining the existing freeway. At the start of the decade, Sydney's suburban passenger rail network was owned by RailCorp and operated under its CityRail brand. CityRail had two tiers of service: suburban services catered for travel within Sydney, while intercity services extended out to the surrounding regions. The new Coalition government decided to reform this structure. RailCorp

10830-563: The third worst road in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory . WestConnex is a motorway scheme currently under construction. The scheme, a joint project of the New South Wales and Australian governments, encompasses widening and extension of the M4 Western Motorway , a new section for the M5 South Western Motorway named the M8, and a new inner western bypass of the Sydney CBD connecting

10944-401: The three self-governing territories, the ACT, the Northern Territory, and Norfolk Island, each have unicameral legislative assemblies. The legislative assembly for the ACT is the only parliament with responsibility for both state/territory and local government functions. The head of government of each state is called the "premier", appointed by the state's governor. In normal circumstances,

11058-594: Was a planned north-south motorway between Frenchs Forest in the Northern Beaches and the WestConnex motorway at Rozelle in the Inner West . The four-lane motorway is planned to be 14 km long. The Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Harbour Tunnel corridor currently carry 80 percent of all vehicles crossing Sydney Harbour and the Parramatta River . The new tunnel would reduce pressure on

11172-717: Was a separate entity from the New South Wales Department of Transport. The authority subsumed the Transport Construction Authority and the Country Rail Infrastructure Authority , and plans and coordinates the functions of RailCorp , the State Transit Authority and Roads & Maritime Services . Transport for NSW took over the management of most train, bus, ferry and light rail services in New South Wales, which had previously been managed by

11286-475: Was accepted by Australia in 1934 and was annexed to the Northern Territory prior to adoption of the Statute of Westminster in 1942, deemed effective from 1939; it has thus become part of Australia. Each external territory is regulated by an Act of the federal Parliament. These Acts contain the majority of provisions determining the legal and political structure applying in that external territory. Under s 122 of

11400-498: Was complete by the end of September 2019. For detailed rollout information see Contactless rollout on buses . The technology is based on a system developed by Cubic Transport Systems on licence from Transport for London . On 8 December 2020, registrations opened to trial an Opal Digital Card where the Opal Card is loaded onto mobile devices such as phones and watches, which can then be used to tap on/tap off, instead of using

11514-403: Was designed from the start to support a variety of cards, but launched with the captive Opal cards. Opal cards are the standard method of paying for fares on the Opal system. The card is a credit card-sized smartcard which includes a microchip and internal RFID aerial, allowing the card to communicate with readers. The microchip enables value to be loaded onto the card, as well as allowing

11628-839: Was expanded to include all Sydney Ferries and Sydney light rail services, and support for Visa and American Express cards was also added. On 26 November 2018, it was further expanded to cover all Sydney Trains and NSW TrainLink intercity services. The contactless fare structure was also changed to charge normal Opal peak hour fares, and support for the daily, weekly and Sunday caps was introduced. However contactless payments could not be used to benefit from or pay for Weekly Travel Rewards, Transfer Discounts, Off-peak train fare discounts, Trip Advantage and free access to Opal park & ride carparks. On 29 July 2019, all Opal benefits except park & ride and on demand services, were extended to contactless payments. The rollout of contactless payment to Opal controlled buses commenced on 2 August 2019 and

11742-477: Was first announced by the government in 1996, with the aim of having a system in place before the 2000 Sydney Olympics . The contract was awarded to ERG Group , but was delayed until 2002 due to a lawsuit from the losing bidder Cubic , which was labelled dishonest by the presiding Supreme Court of New South Wales judge. In 2001, Cubic launched a court action against the government but the case exposed an improper relationship between its then managing director and

11856-592: Was formed from a merger of the Roads & Traffic Authority and NSW Maritime . Planning responsibilities were transferred to Transport for NSW. On 1 December 2019, RMS was dissolved and all its functions were merged into Transport for NSW. The ticketing system used on government-operated services in urban New South Wales was expanded and rebranded in April 2010. Called " MyZone ", the changes somewhat standardised fare product names and ticket designs across trains, buses and ferries; and brought privately operated buses into

11970-423: Was founded in 1788 and originally comprised much of the Australian mainland, as well as Lord Howe Island , New Zealand , Norfolk Island , and Van Diemen's Land , in addition to the area currently referred to as the state of New South Wales. During the 19th century, large areas were successively separated to form the Colony of Tasmania (initially established as a separate colony named Van Diemen's Land in 1825),

12084-472: Was introduced in April 2010. MyZone was designed to simplify the fare system and remove one of the stumbling blocks to the introduction of a smart card. The AFC system was retained where it was in use, but tickets could also be used on private buses – and subsequently on light rail – by presenting a ticket to the bus driver or tram conductor. A replacement for the AFC based on smart card technology, named Tcard,

12198-543: Was introduced in November 2017. The T2 line was split in two. The new T2 consists of services from Leppington to the city via Granville, with a branch to Parramatta being added. A new T8 line covers services from Macarthur to the city via Sydney Airport or Sydenham. The T2 is coloured light blue – a similar colour to CityRail's South Line. The T8 is coloured green. T5 services were modified to no longer travel to and from Campbelltown, instead starting and terminating at Leppington. Late night and weekend services were introduced on

12312-464: Was introduced on 6 July 2017. This allows passengers to tap on or off using their card or a mobile device linked to their card's account, thereby removing the need to use an Opal card or ticket. The trial began on the F1 Manly ferry service, initially only for holders of Mastercard contactless cards. All passengers were charged the price of an adult Opal single trip ticket. On 12 March 2018, the trial

12426-461: Was introduced. New mode icons for trains, buses, ferries and light rail were also introduced. Train, ferry and light rail services were given line numbers (T1-T7 for trains, F1-F7 for ferries and L1 for light rail). The icon for metro was also introduced when the metro opened to service in May 2019. Since absorbing Roads & Maritime Services in December 2019 (see below), it is also responsible for building and maintaining road infrastructure, managing

12540-407: Was later extended until September 2026. In September 2011 the new name for the system was announced as 'Opal', chosen from a selection of 665 names. Transport for NSW said Opal was chosen because it was 'uniquely Australian', short, and easy to say. As well as the opal being Australia's national gemstone, the black opal is the New South Wales gemstone symbol. The initial Opal rollout commenced on

12654-666: Was left of the Inner West line. The former lines were: Central and Berowra via Gordon      Central and Emu Plains or Richmond via Parramatta These were replaced with: Central and Berowra via Gordon.      Central and Hornsby via Macquarie Park.      Central and Emu Plains, Richmond or Epping via Strathfield. City Circle and Macarthur via Revesby and either Sydenham (peak) or Airport      City Circle and Campbelltown via Strathfield and Granville The South West Rail Link

12768-608: Was settled in February 2012. After terminating the Tcard contract, the government quickly moved to reset the smartcard project. It called for expressions of interest for the second attempt at the project in August 2008. In April 2010 the government awarded the contract to the Pearl Consortium, whose members are the Commonwealth Bank , Cubic and Downer EDI . The initial contract ran until September 2024. It

12882-485: Was stripped of its role as network manager and passenger service operator but remained the network owner. Two new operators were created: Sydney Trains maintained the network and operated suburban passenger services, while NSW Trains operated intercity services under the NSW TrainLink brand. The new operators took control on 1 July 2013. The Rail Clearways Program was a package of infrastructure improvements to

12996-413: Was then demolished. The Inner West Light Rail was extended from Lilyfield to Dulwich Hill in March 2014. Like much of the preexisting line, the extension uses the alignment of a disused freight railway. The CBD and South East Light Rail is a future line that will operate from Circular Quay at the northern end of the Central Business District to Central station at the southern end, then continuing to

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