Examples of how fares work

In this example, you travel by train from Joondalup Station to Edgewater Station. Because of the short distance, the two-section fare applies. Remember, a two-section fare is for a single one-way journey.

At Joondalup Station, you either tag on with your SmartRider or buy a two-section cash ticket. When using the ticket machine, you may either select the two-section fare or use the suburb option.

With SmartRider

With a cash ticket

In this example you travel by train from Joondalup to Perth Underground. This is a three-zone journey.

At Joondalup Station at 10.00 am, you either tag on with your SmartRider or buy a three-zone cash ticket to travel to Perth Underground Station. If you are unsure about the number of zones, you can use the search option and select Perth to automatically obtain the correct ticket. As your journey is less than five zones, your ticket will allow you to travel for up to two hours, which in this case means it expires at 12 noon.

Additionally, as your journey is more than two-zones, your fare will be capped at the two-zone cost.

After tagging on or buying your ticket, you board the 10.09 am train that arrives at Perth Undergound Station at 10.35 am.

With SmartRider

You tag off at Perth Underground Station and the system deducts a two-zone fare from your card balance.

With a cash ticket

You keep the ticket with you during the journey and arrive at Perth Underground Station well within the 12 noon expiry time.

In this example you begin with the same train ride as example 2, departing Joondalup Station at 10.00am en-route to Perth Underground Station. You leave Perth Underground Station to meet a friend for coffee, then return to the station and take a second train to Bull Creek Station.

With SmartRider

If you tag on at Perth Underground Station before 12 noon, the system deducts no fare when you tag off at Bull Creek Station. This is because when you tag on at Perth Underground Station you are within the two-hour time limit of the three-zone fare the system deducted at Perth Underground, and Bull Creek station is in Zone 2.

If you tag on at Perth Underground Station after 12 noon, the system deducts a new two-zone fare when you tag off at Bull Creek Station as you are outside the original two hour time limit.

With a cash ticket

If you board a train from Perth Underground Station to Bull Creek before 12 noon, you can use the same ticket. It is still valid for travel anywhere within three zones of Joondalup Station.

If you board a train from Perth Underground Station to Bull Creek after 12 noon, you need another ticket.

In this example you start from Rockingham Station 10.00am to Perth Underground Station. You leave Perth Underground to meet a friend for coffee. Afterwards you return and take a second train from Perth Underground back to Rockingham Station.

With SmartRider

When you travel beyond four zones the time limit is raised to three hours. Therefore as long as you had tagged back on before 1.00pm at Perth Underground, there will be no additional charge to return.

If you tagged on at Perth after 1.00pm, you would be charged another fare, in this case it would be capped at the DayRider rate.

With a cash ticket

When you travel beyond four zones the time limit is raised to three hours. At Rockingham, you need to have purchased a five-zone ticket.

As long as you re-enter Perth Underground before 1.00pm, your ticket will still be valid when you leave Rockingham Station.

If you re-enter Perth Underground after 1.00pm, your previous ticket will have expired and you will need to purchase another five-zone ticket.

In this example you travel by bus from Joondalup to Perth. You begin by boarding a bus at the stand outside Joondalup Station at 10.00 am, and change buses twice before arriving at Wellington Street, near Perth Underground Station, about 11.45 am.

Although this journey involves riding on three buses and takes longer than the equivalent train journey, you can do it for the same fare. This is because your fare entitles you to travel anywhere within the purchased number of zones from your starting zone within two hours, or within three hours if you travel more than four zones.

With SmartRider

You need to tag on and off each bus. The system handles the fare calculations. Provided your last tag-on is within two hours of your first, you pay one fare (capped at two-zones) for the entire journey.

With a cash ticket

You need to tell the driver of the first bus your destination is Perth. The driver charges you a three-zone fare (capped at two-zones) and gives you a ticket that expires in two hours. You can change buses and travel all the way to Perth on that ticket, provided you board each bus before the expiry time.