Transport minister Mark Bailey has announced that public transport fares will be frozen in 2021 in order to encourage commuters to return following the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns.

TransLink has been hiking public transport fares since 2018, but this and the COVID-19 lockdown have caused a decrease in public transport users by about 80% at the height of the pandemic. 

In addition to freezing fares, a new app that will forecast transport capacity and extra bus and train services will be added to aid and prepare commuters for social distancing.

The man responsible for recently prompting Adelaide’s strict three-day lockdown will not face any criminal charges for his actions.

A taskforce was dispatched after the man lied to authorities stating that he worked at a local pizza restaurant when he only went there to collect a takeaway order, leading to a false implication that the area’s coronavirus strain was extremely contagious.

The South Australian police stated there was not enough evidence against the man to press adequate charges.
 

The world’s most complete and best preserved triceratops fossil will go on display at the Melbourne Museum from next year.

The 67-million-year-old skeleton was unearthed in the United States being equated to the Mona Lisa in rarity and value, weighing in with an estimated $3 million dollar price tag.

It is expected that the display will attract a crowd with many scientists across the world anticipated to come and study the specimen.
 

New Zealand has declared a climate emergency and promised to achieve a neutral carbon footprint within five years.

Yesterday Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern formerly declared the climate emergency status, fulfilling her election campaign promise.

New Zealand joins Japan, South Korea, Argentina, Italy, Spain and Ireland who have also made their promise to neutralise carbon emissions, however Australia’s federal government is yet to follow suit.
 

Outgoing US president Donald Trump has announced his intention to run for a second term in the 2024 US election at a recent White House holiday party.

The announcement was captured in a video of the event, with attendees now criticised for disregarding social distancing and COVID-19 safety measures despite the nation’s ongoing health crisis.

During the event, Trump also continued to attribute the election’s results to voter fraud, despite having no evidence to support this as US states continue to confirm their final tallies in favour of Biden.