TRAVELLING between Bathurst and Sydney is now easier for customers with the roll out of Opal technology at the Bathurst Railway Station.
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Bathurst rail customers can now take advantage of a recent addition to the station – an Opal top up machine.
The machine gives people the ability to top up their Opal card or purchase an Opal Single Trip ticket.
Rail Action Bathurst chair John Hollis welcomed the new addition.
“The whole point of this is it’s a more professional facility,” he said.
Before this new addition, Mr Hollis said customers had no choice but to purchase their Opal top ups at a range of city centre shops in Bathurst.
He said people who travelled irregularly on the train were also restricted.
“There was no option in Bathurst to buy a single Opal ticket, anywhere in Bathurst,” Mr Hollis said.
He said the lack of an Opal top up machine was inconvenient for many customers.
“Bathurst is a significant rail hub and it’s just a great facility. It makes it more attractive for people to travel to Bathurst,” Mr Hollis said.
Member for Bathurst Paul Toole said it was a part of the NSW Government’s commitment to improve customer options at major locations outside of the Sydney metropolitan area.
“Rail patronage figures show that on average, more than 14,000 people each year make the trip from Bathurst to Sydney,” he said.
“We also know that each month, around 1500 Central West rail customers commute to Bathurst as their entry point to the Sydney metropolitan system, so it makes sense to link them to this technology at this important transport hub.
Bathurst is a significant rail hub and it's just a great facility. It makes it more attractive for people to travel to Bathurst.
- Rail Action Bathurst chair John Hollis
“Opal is easy to use and extremely convenient for customers.
“There are a number of incentives based on frequency and time of travel.”
Opal provides ticketing services across the greater Sydney rail network as well as on ferries, light rail and more than 5000 buses across Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, Hunter, Illawarra and the Southern Highlands.
“Opal also makes negotiating the metropolitan system easier, with integration across all public transport modes and paper ticketing systems no longer in use,” Mr Toole said.
“The new machine at Bathurst will link people into all of these great benefits when using the Opal network.”
Top ups can also be purchased through the Opal Travel App or online at www.opal.com.au.
