Frequent user discount on Go card

[ozbob]

An interesting stat in the TTF Report  ( http://www.ttf.org.au/Content/improvingcommute0711.aspx ) is that the average number of trips by frequent users was 7.3 trips per week (page 11).

In view of the general public concern with the cost of travel, particularly for the frequent users would you support a reduction in the number of journeys being reduced to 8 for example?  The original go card fare structure did have discount kicking after 6 trips, which is why I included that in the options.  

My own view is that a reduction to 8 journeys would actually drive further public transport utilisation, and rather than reduce the fare box actually improve it as there would be real value in getting to > 8 journeys in a week.  It might even start to turn around the fare box/subsidy ratio.

System costs for a change such as this would be minimal I expect.

I know there are other options but for now just interested in this as a possible interim change pending other options if it went that way (eg. capping).

Thanks.

[#Metro]

If you do >2+ journeys (so you know the technicality this you don't count transfers blah blah) no further charges should apply or there should be a set nominal fare of $1 or $2 beyond that irrespective of zone.

Maximum simplicity. On weekends, if one does more than >2+ journeys then same deal.

I think something like that is workable- it doesn't touch the peak, it allows some breathing space to get revenue from off-peak usage, and then beyond that its free range.

By definition, the whole idea of a discount should be that only a few people qualify for it.
Mass discounting isn't discounting-- it's wholesale price reductions.

[#Metro]

My own view is that a reduction to 8 journeys would actually drive further public transport utilisation, and rather than reduce the fare box actually improve it as there would be real value in getting to > 8 journeys in a week.  It might even start to turn around the fare box/subsidy ratio.

System costs for a change such as this would be minimal I expect.

It is easy to speculate-- we need to do a real world test with a group of people/sample and figure out what the 'Go' is.

[Gazza]

Just bear in mind, under that TTF survey, they define users into 3 groups:

-Frequent Users (People who use it at least once a week). They are 33% of the survey sample.

-Less frequent users (People who use it less than once a week, but more than once a year). They are 42% of the survey sample.

-Non users (People who use it once a year or less). They are 25% of the survey sample.


Those are pretty broad brush categories IMO.

So basically, all the survey is saying is that, for all the people who use use PT once a week or more, the average number of trips is 7.3.

Or in other words, it's lumping a heavy user who does 10 trips a week to work and back, with say an older user that might only do  say 4 trips (doctors one day, shops the other etc), with someone that perhaps drives every day and whose only use of PT is the night link on Saturday night or a trip to the footy.

Of course if we combine all these user groups together like they did its going to push the average down to 7.3!

If they are defining a frequent user as one trip, then they've pretty much captured every user who even acknowledges PT exists...But what we are trying to do with a FUD is separate off within this pool the group that truly do use it a lot. Once a week isn't a lot....T initial definition of frequent user by the survey is certainly very different to what I'd call a frequent user (Or indeed what TL considers a frequent user)

I don't see it as a sound basis of fare policy to be kicking in the frequent user discount at 7 just because that's what the average spat out.

I still maintain what is needed is a histogram showing how many people do 1, how many people do 2, do 3, do 4 etc etc up 14+....See if we can identify a pattern from that.

Which brings me back to my main argument through it all. The real problem that needs fixing is that only 67% of the survey don't even get on PT once a week!

[ozbob]

Yes noted Gazza, TransLink do have the data re average journeys and so forth will be useful to know that, hasn't been made available publicly.

Some has in terms of the groups that do the most daily journeys within subgroups: university students, then pensioners.

Mr Strachan mentioned again on radio this morning that further enhancements for the go card are go, so exploring different ways of doing that is worthwhile.  

I am interested in all options.  This thread is just seeing what people think of moving the journey cap down.

[SurfRail]

I'd like to see where we go with 8 journeys per trip, but I would prefer greater off-peak incentives.  People are clearly travelling, it is more a case of getting them to shift that behaviour outside the peak if possible.

The best incentive would be frequency of course.

[dwb]

I could probably live with 8 (given it would act as a sort of offset for commuters for the 15% increases) however I think a much better way to go would be to scrap the FUD entirely, and build it into the value you could gain from a monthly value based cap (unrelated to zones) - each user could pick the value level a month in advance, and get a certain discount depending on that amount, much like a mobile telephone cap, whether they use it or not they pay for it, but the higher it is the greater the discount. This divorces the decision to make a single trip from the cost and encourages people to use PT for more of their trips. Each month that someone exceeds their cap they are more likely to up next month's preset value, and then during that month it will be prepaid and encourage them to take advantage of it (similar to the "free" concept). Of course nothing in life is free, but this is one of the exact reasons why people choose to use the car for PT contestable trip, they've already paid for the car and they don't want to pay for the bus.