Media Release: Cost of granting postgrad students transport concessions greatly exaggerated-new report

The cost of granting full-time Victorian postgraduate students public transport concessions has been greatly overestimated, according to a new report commissioned by the Fares Fair PTV campaign.

“New modeling shows it would only cost the Andrews Government only $103 per postgraduate student, per year to introduce public transport concessions for all postgraduate students,” said Thomas Whiteside, spokesperson for the Fares Fair PTV campaign.

“Previous estimations by Universities Australia had the cost at $1014 per student, but those numbers were based on inaccurate assumptions about the amount of travel undertaken by students. 

“Sixty-seven percent of international students say if they would have chosen to study somewhere else if they had of known there weren’t public transport concessions available in Melbourne.

“It’s a no-brainer.  International education is Victoria’s largest export industry – it generates more than $5.8 billion every year and 30,000 jobs. 

“It would cost Premier Andrews just $6 million to fix this problem – that’s 0.1 percent of the revenue that international students generate. A pittance when you consider to the risk that international students are deterred from studying in Melbourne because transport is too expensive.

“Premier Andrews should make international students feel welcome if he is going to claim we are the Education State. Melbourne’s public transport is the most expensive in the country.

“In every other state full-time postgraduate students can access public transport concessions. Other states recognise that full-time students have limited capacity to earn due to the requirements of their study. 

“It’s time the Andrews Government gave all full-time students public transport concessions. All full-time students deserve this basic level of support,” said Mr Whiteside.