TransLink data shows on any school day almost 4000 students don’t pay their bus fares, costing an extra half a million dollars more annually than three years ago.
The number of students evading fares has tripled over just the last two years, correlating with a 51 per cent drop in revenue from Gold Coast school bus services over the same period.
Bus drivers are not allowed to refuse service to students, leading to Queensland bus drivers recording 1.53 million fare evasions in the last financial year, almost double the previous year before.
In response to the growing issue, TransLink will add 16 more network officers to patrol public transport and deal with students taking advantage of the transport policy.