National Blind Travel Pass: State by State
Entitlements
Last
updated: October 5, 2005
By 1 January 2003, the National Blind Travel Pass had been introduced in every State and Territory. The introduction of the pass means that people who are blind no longer have to apply for interim or temporary travel passes when they travel inter-state.
If you hold a National Travel Pass, you are entitled to receive the discounts that are available to people who are blind who live in the State or Territory you are visiting. For example, if you live in Western Australia and you travel to the Australian Capital Territory, your Travel Pass will entitle you to the range of discounts that are available to people living in the ACT. Holding a National Blind Travel Pass does NOT necessarily mean that you will receive the same discounts that are offered in your home State or Territory. It is always advisable to check what transport discounts are available in the State or Territory you are travelling to.
Below are links to information about the entitlements offered in each State and Territory to holders of the National Blind Travel Pass and details about who to contact for more information.
What does the Pass entitle people to? Does it provide a concession rate for carers?
The card entitles a person to travel free of charge and where accompanied by an attendant, that person can also travel for free.
Is the Pass accepted on all public transport within your state, including those operated by private operators?
ACTION provides about 99% of bus services in the ACT. Private bus companies operating in the ACT do not accept the national pass, however some of them have individual arrangements with people who are vision impaired regarding free or concession travel.
Who should people contact if they require further information?
Mr Pedro Gonzales, Concessions Officer at ACTION, phone 6207 9696, can provide information about obtaining a pass.
Ms Jean Butler, Road Transport, phone 6207 5547, can provide information about concession policy.
What does the Pass entitle people to? Does it provide a concession rate for carers?
Free travel on State Transit Authority services, including City Rail, buses and ferries (excluding Jet Cats). Half price on Country Link services and interstate rail services (first class and economy).
Attendants can travel for free on the above services if the blind traveller has an “attendant endorsement” on their pass. The person must apply to have this endorsement included on their pass. If the State you are travelling from, such as Queensland, does not provide the facility to have an attendant endorsed on your travel pass, you will not receive the attendant concession in NSW.
Sydney airport link, light rail and monorail fares are as follows:
Airport link: Blind person travels free and attendant pays concession fare.
Light rail: Blind person travels free and attendant pays concession fare.
Mono rail: Blind person pays concession fare and attendant pays full fare.
Is the Pass accepted on all public transport within your state, including those operated by private operators?
The card is not accepted by private operators, though individual operators may have concession arrangements.
Who should people contact if they require further information?
Call City Rail Passes and Concessions on 02 9379 4989.
What does the Pass entitle people to? Does it provide a concession rate for carers?
Cardholders must abide
by the Northern Territory’s conditions for this card. Currently, travel on public transport is free
of charge for the cardholder.
There is no provision
in the Northern Territory for a carer’s concession,
based on the National Blind Travel Pass.
Is the Pass accepted on all public transport within your state, including those operated by private operators?
The Northern Territory Government contracts private companies to provide
the public bus services. On the public
network, travel is free for cardholders. Recognition of the Travel Pass on
privately operated services is subject to the conditions of travel offered by
the service provider. Clients should
contact the private operator.
Do
people who are blind have to apply (or reapply) for the pass? If so, what
process should they follow?
Cards are issued through the Guide Dogs Association of the NT and are
valid for a period of 5 years. On
expiration of the initial card, clients may have their Travel Pass reissued
through the Guide Dogs Association.
For the initial issue of a Travel Pass, a person applies through the
Association. The Association will
process the application and escort the client to Motor Vehicle Registry, which
provides a free laminating service for the Travel Pass, if required.
Who should people contact if they require further information?
For inquiries about concessional travel,
contact the shift Interchange Supervisors by telephone on (08) 8924 7666.
Regarding initial applications, contact the Guide Dogs Association of SA
and NT Incorporated on (08) 8981 5488.
What does the Pass entitle people to? Does it provide a concession rate for carers?
Card holders are entitled to free travel on all urban scheduled public transport services throughout the state. Free travel is not available on long distance bus or rail services.
It is not current government policy to provide attendants or carers with free or concessional travel.
Is the Pass accepted on all public transport within your state, including those operated by private operators?
See above.
Who should people contact if they require further information?
Call 1800 772 675.
What does the Pass entitle people to? Does it provide a concession rate for carers?
Unlimited free travel on all Adelaide Metro bus, train and tram services. A guide dog may accompany a pass holder free of charge.
South Australia does not provide a concession rate to carers travelling with a pass holder.
Is the Pass accepted on all public transport within your state, including those operated by private operators?
Private operators providing country bus services are not required to provide free travel to holders of the travel pass, however some may choose to recognise the card.
Who should people contact if they require further information?
Call the Passenger Transport InfoLine on 8210 1000.
What does the Pass entitle people to? Does it provide a concession rate for carers?
Holders of the Vision Impaired Travel Pass are entitled to discounted travel on authorised regular passenger transport services Australia wide. In Tasmania, persons with visual impairments living in the cities of Hobart, Launceston and Burnie who travel on services provided by Metro Tasmania Pty Ltd are able to travel free of charge. Metro have for some time been issuing their own travel passes for use by people with visual impairments, and these passes are issued upon production of a statement from the Royal Guide Dogs for the Blind Association of Tasmania which declares that the holder is legally blind.
Persons living in the city of Devonport who travel on services provided by Merseylink also travel free of charge, but need to produce a current Pension Concession Card issued for the Disability Support Pension (Blind).
Travel on authorised services elsewhere in Tasmania, subject to production of a current Vision Impaired Travel Pass, will be undertaken at a concession of 50% at the time of travel.
Mobility Instructors accompanying the pass holder will also be able to travel for the 50% concession.
Is the Pass accepted on all public transport in your state, including those operated by private operators?
The Vision Impaired Travel Pass is accepted for concession travel on all authorised regular passenger transport bus services.
Who should people contact if they require further information?
Persons requiring additional information are able to contact the Passenger Transport Services Branch of DIER by telephoning (03) 6233 5193, by facsimile (03) 6233 5377, or via e-mail to passenger.transport@dier.tas.gov.au.
What does the Pass entitle people to? Does it provide a concession rate for carers?
The pass provides free access to all V/Line and Met Services in Victoria.
Carers are not provided for, with the exception of war veterans/TPI. Veterans who meet the eligibility criteria for a blind pass and whose injuries were war related can have their pass endorsed to allow an attendant who is travelling with them to travel for free.
Is the Pass accepted on all public transport within your state, including those operated by private operators?
The pass is accepted by all public transport private operators in V/Line and the MET. The pass will not provide free travel on services operated by private companies outside the Met or V/Line systems.
Who should people contact if they
require further information?
Further
information, please call any of the numbers below:
96191159,
96191568 or 96191982.
The Central Pass office
Southern
Cross Station
99
Spencer St
Docklands,
3008
The
Central Pass office is located on the concourse of Southern Cross station
underneath the Telstra Dome Bridge at the Bourke St end of the station, in the
same area as the Luggage Hall, Travellers Aid and Bus interchange.
What does the Pass entitle people to? Does it provide a concession rate for carers?
Metropolitan Area: Bus, Rail and
Ferry
The Travel Pass holder is entitled
to free travel on Transperth buses, trains and
ferries in the metropolitan area including Mandurah
and Dawesville (southern boundary) and Yanchep (northern boundary). Guides also travel free.
Country Travel in WA (within a
town) - Bus Only
The Travel Pass holder is entitled to
free travel on public bus transport services operating within Albany, Broome, Bunbury, Busselton, Carnarvon, Geraldton, Kalgoorlie and Port Hedland.
Guides also travel free.
Country Travel in WA (between
towns) - Bus and Rail
The Travel Pass holder is entitled
to free travel on bus or train services operated by the West Australian
Government Railway (WAGR) anywhere in the state.
Guides also travel free. To access these free trips, Travel Pass holders must
present their Travel Pass to any agent of the WAGR at
the time of purchasing their ticket.
Is the Pass accepted on all public transport within your state, including those operated by private operators?
See answer to previous question.
Do
people who are blind have to apply (or reapply) for the pass? If so, what
process should they follow?
The WA travel pass is issued to
eligible permanent residents of WA every 5 years. Once a person is deemed
eligible, a new pass is automatically provided on expiry of the old pass. The
current WA travel pass expires in December 2005.
Who should people contact if they require further information?
Administration Coordinator
16 Sunbury Road
Victoria Park
Western Australia WA 6100
Tel: (08) 9311 8202
Great Southern Railway operate the Indian Pacific, the Ghan and the Overlander services. There are generous concession fares for blind people on all services operating between Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney. For detailed fares and bookings contact The Great Southern Railway Call Centre 133147.
For information on Airline fares and dog guide policy, please visit our dedicated page on Airline Policy.