Melbourne tram travel: free zone and Myki tips

Melbourne tram travel is free for trips that stay inside the Free Tram Zone, which covers the city centre and Docklands. A trip that starts or ends outside the zone needs a valid Myki, touched on as you board. Inspectors can report you if you cannot show a valid ticket, and Public Transport Victoria (PTV) lists the adult fine at $229.

Sources for this section: PTV, Zones and Authorised Officers.

Where tram travel is free

The Free Tram Zone began on 1 January 2015. PTV gives its main edges as Spring Street, Flinders Street and La Trobe Street. The tram routes on Victoria, William and Elizabeth streets around Queen Victoria Market are included, and so is Docklands. Yarra Trams also described the zone as including Flinders Street Station and Federation Square.

The free ride covers tram journeys that stay inside the zone. Stops inside the zone are marked and the edges are signed. PTV says drivers make regular announcements near an edge.

The City Circle tram, route 35, is free too. It uses heritage W-class trams, and an audio commentary gives details of landmarks such as Parliament House and Federation Square. It runs both ways about every 12 minutes, from 10am to 6pm Sunday to Wednesday and 10am to 9pm Thursday to Saturday. It does not run on Christmas Day or Good Friday.

Sources for this section: Yarra Trams, Free CBD tram zone from 1 January 2015 and Extra Free Tram Zone information added to tramTRACKER; PTV, Zones and Visiting Melbourne; Yarra Trams, City Circle Tram.

Buy and top up your Myki

Myki is Melbourne's ticket for trams, trains and buses. Yarra Trams said Metcards would stop working on 29 December 2012 and that Myki would be the only ticket. Tickets are not sold on trams, so buy and top up before you board.

A full fare Myki card costs $6. More than 800 outlets sell it, including every 7-Eleven store. A new card needs a top up before it works. At an outlet, the minimum is $1 of Myki Money. You can also top up at a Myki machine in a train station or at some tram stops. An online top up can take about 90 minutes. A card ordered online takes 7 to 10 business days to arrive. Overseas credit cards cannot be used to buy or top up a Myki online.

Visitors can buy a Myki Explorer pack. The full fare pack costs $15 and includes $9 of Myki Money. It is sold at the Melbourne Visitor Centre in Federation Square, at SkyBus terminals at Melbourne Airport and Southern Cross Station, at PTV Hubs in Melbourne and at many hotels.

Sources for this section: Yarra Trams, myki is the only ticket to travel and For our new users; PTV, Buy a myki, myki retail outlets, Top up a myki, myki Explorer and Visiting Melbourne.

Touch on and fares

Touch on at the reader when you get on a tram. Touch your card to the centre of the reader, then listen for the beep and look for the green light. You only need to touch off if your whole trip is in Zone 2.

Myki Money is pay as you go. Your first touch on of the day starts a 2 hour fare. If you keep riding after it ends, a daily cap applies, which equals two 2 hour fares. If your first touch on is after 6pm, one 2 hour fare covers you until 3am.

Most tram routes run entirely in Zone 1, and a trip between Zone 1 and the free zone costs a Zone 1 fare.

Sources for this section: PTV, How to use myki, myki Money, Metropolitan fares, 2017 annual fare adjustment sees concession changes and Zones.

Where the free ride ends

If your trip starts or ends outside the zone, PTV says you must touch on with a valid Myki when you board the tram. Do it as you step on, even if you board inside the zone.

If your whole trip stays inside the zone, you do not need to touch on. A touch on there costs a 2 hour fare in Zone 1. To get the money back, touch off on the same tram while it is still in the zone. Allow 24 hours, then call PTV on 1800 800 007.

Sources for this section: PTV, Zones.

How to avoid a fine

Ticket inspectors are called Authorised Officers. They may wear a uniform or plain clothes, and they carry a badge, photo ID and a portable Myki reader. They can check your ticket after you leave the tram and ask for your name, address and proof of identity.

The $75 on-the-spot penalty fare ended on 1 January 2017. A single infringement system replaced it. The new approach allows more use of warnings in some cases, when people fail to pay by mistake. PTV says inspectors do not issue fines or official warnings themselves. They write a report, and a government department decides whether to act. It may mail a fine, give an official warning in some cases, ask for more information, or summon you to court for multiple or serious offences. PTV lists the fine for failing to produce a valid ticket at $229 for adults and $78 for under 18s, as at 1 July 2016.

• Top up first. With a negative balance you cannot touch on and have no valid ticket.
• Touch on whenever a trip starts or ends outside the free zone.
• Know the child rules. Children aged 4 and under travel free. Children aged 5 to 18 can use a child Myki, and 17 and 18 year olds using one must carry government proof of age, such as a passport.

Sources for this section: PTV, Authorised Officers, New approach to fare compliance, myki Money, Buy a myki and Zones; Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources, Public transport fines.

Plan your ride

Trams run from 5am to midnight Monday to Thursday and 7am to 11pm on Sunday. Yarra Trams lists night trams on Friday and Saturday nights on routes 19, 67, 75, 86, 96 and 109.

The free tramTRACKER app for iPhone and Android shows predicted arrival times. You can also check it online, at major tram stops or on 1300 MYTRAM.

Small animals can ride in a suitable container, and folding bikes ride free. Surfboards are not allowed. When you get off, our Melbourne laneways walk covers the lanes on foot.

Sources for this section: PTV, Visiting Melbourne; Yarra Trams, Facts & figures, tramTRACKER and For our new users.