ACT seniors will be the first user group to be given access to ACTION’s new MyWay smartcard ticketing system when it is rolled out from next Monday, Chief Minister and Minister for Transport, Jon Stanhope, said today.
“MyWay represents the way forward for bus travel in the ACT and the first stage of this will be sending letters to the ACT’s 47,000 Seniors Card holders over a three-week period to give them the option of replacing their card with a combined ACT Seniors MyWay card,” Mr Stanhope said.
“Seniors interested in taking up the offer just need to complete the application form that will be enclosed with the letter and take it to any Canberra Connect Shopfront, ACT Public Library or the Council on the Ageing office in Hughes.”
The letters will be sent out by the Council on the Ageing, which has been working closely with the ACT Government over the seniors rollout.
“As an added incentive, seniors who take up this offer before the end of Seniors Week on 25 March 2011 will have $10 worth of bus travel pre-loaded onto their card,” Mr Stanhope said.
Mr Stanhope the seniors roll out would be followed by a gradual rollout to the rest of the ACT.
“Given the experiences of other cities, such as Melbourne and Sydney, which experienced significant technical issues, the ACT Government is taking a prudent approach to rolling out the new ticketing system,” Mr Stanhope said.
“MyWay cards are expected to be made available to the general community on Monday, 7 March. Cash fares will continue to apply and there will be a transition period until Monday, 11 April. School students will begin using MyWay cards from the start of the second term.”
Mr Stanhope said that the technical issues which had been identified in the trial of the MyWay system had now been rectified.
“While we expect there will be teething issues when implementing the new ticketing system, we have undertaken a thorough testing process over the last six months to solve as many of these as possible.
“I look forward to the many benefits that MyWay will provide customers including the ability to recharge the cards via direct debit and BPAY to save 5% as well as quicker boarding times. MyWay will also provide valuable data about where passengers get on and off buses to help us plan a better network.”
For more information on the MyWay system, visit http://www.transport.act.gov.au/ or call 13 17 10.
This page was last updated on 12 June 2023
