No change to public transport following red settings

Following the Government’s announcement that the country will move to the red setting of the Covid Protection Framework at 11:59 tonight (23 January 2022), Metlink advises that no changes will be made to regional public transport services, which will continue to operate as normal.

Metlink General Manager Scott Gallacher said “we will continue to provide full services on our bus, train and ferry network though we expect, from recent experience, that loadings will be lighter than normal as people respond to the Government’s call to work from home where possible.”

Under the new protection framework settings:

• Full timetables will remain in operation
• Physical distancing will not be required on board or at stops
• Face coverings will remain mandatory on all public transport, and  at arrival and departure points, for example airports, train stations and bus stops
• Vaccine passes will not be required to use public transport
• Scanning QR codes or keeping a record of services used is strongly urged
• Normal fares will remain – including cash, but contactless payment is preferred where available

Metlink will continue to follow all government requirements under the protection framework, and we really want to emphasise the importance of minimising the spread of Covid-19.

“So we strongly urge travellers to ensure they mask-up before entering public transport and scan in, for the sake of passengers and, very importantly, of our critical front-line staff on whom we depend to keep services running.

“And given the uncertainty of the pace of the onset of Omicron in the community and its potential impact on our staff, we will continue to assess service levels throughout our network,” said Scott Gallacher.