Introduce the Go Card

AFTER spending almost four years in southeast Queensland, I recently moved back to North Queensland to pursue a career opportunity, as well as to reconnect with family and friends in a community where I was born and raised.

While I was in Brisbane, I lived in the inner-city, and due to the availability of public transport services, I did not own a car, and relied on these services to get me to where I needed to go.

Making use of public transport, no matter if I was catching a train in Brisbane, a bus on the Sunshine Coast, or a tram on the Gold Coast, was made easier thanks to the Go Card.

I have recently come to learn that the old QConnect system which oversaw public transport operations in regional Queensland, is being phased out in favour of TransLink, which manages services in the southeast. Cairns and Mackay’s bus services have already transitioned into TransLink, and centres such as Townsville and Rockhampton, are in the process of transitioning, hopefully during the year.

While TransLink will eventually manage regional public transport services, it appears as though the Go Card will not be making its appearance north of Noosa, anytime soon.

Imagine, someone in Earlville being able to use their Go Card to catch bus services around town, and then being able to use it again when they tap on at Brisbane Airport, to catch a train to Brisbane City or the Gold Coast. The introduction of Go Card to regional Queensland would increase connectivity across our state.

Minister Mark Bailey, as the Minister for Transport and Main Roads, I ask you to consider the introduction of Go Card to regional public transport services, and I urge you to improve the public transport experience for public transport users in regional Queensland. Benjamin Gertz, Annandale