From today, for a limited time only, the Tasmanian government is offering free travel on all of the state's bus routes.
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It is an initiative that has the faint whiff of a secondhand car dealer promising they will throw in an extended warranty with far too much fine print.
In the spirit of not looking a gift horse in the mouth, however, the five weeks of free public bus travel will surely be welcomed by those who can make use of it.
It is unclear why five weeks, why the month of April, and why not a longer discounted period over a shorter free period.
Perhaps there is optimism that the fuel crisis will have abated by the end of April, just in time for the federal election to come round.
But that may be too cynical, as this program will certainly help some families in the short term.
The issue with Tasmania's public transport system, despite the transformative investments the state government is claiming to make in the space, is that it does not adequately service the population that requires it.
Despite being relatively small in a geographic sense and having a small population, Tasmania is still a widely dispersed state and that presents issues for public transport logistics.
As University of Tasmania Professor of Human Geography and Planning Jason Byrne noted, just 40 per cent of the population lives in the capital city; compare that to the 80 per cent in Western Australia.
Tasmania is also a poor state.
And outside of the state's cities, many live in area not serviced by reliable, flexible and efficient public transport, and the price may still put it out of reach for many when they do have access.
So to have it free for five weeks may encourage increased patronage for a short period, but unless it is dramatically cheaper than driving a private vehicle, and that will only happen if fuel prices continue to soar, it is likely few will stay on the bus once paid travel resumes.
Unfortunately, as public transport in Tasmania is already highly subsidised by the government it is unlikely there will be significant changes that make it a more attractive choice for travellers into the future.
And while other options, such as electric vehicles, also remain prohibitively expensive, it appears that the cost of living is simply going to continue to steadily climb, putting further pressure on the most vulnerable in our community.
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