Glory cancels game-day travel deal

Public transport will not be included in the cost of admission to Perth Glory games this season after the club decided not to renew the arrangement with Transperth.

This means that fans using public transport will need to buy cash tickets or use their SmartRider to pay for travel to and from Glory games.

It also means the wait after a game will be longer and the ride more crowded because special buses and trains can no longer be provided.

The PTA’s David Hynes said the club’s decision meant the end of the travel entitlement on both memberships and game-day tickets.

“Transperth has been getting passengers to and from Glory games happily and without incident under this joint-ticketing arrangement for more than a decade,” he said.

“Though the travel seemed free to Glory fans, a small portion of each ticket and membership price was rebated by the club back to Transperth to go part of the way to funding the ‘free’ travel and extra services that were put on to transport those attending the games.

“The joint-ticketing concept is well established and supported by other sporting codes and event promoters. We are very disappointed that Glory has decided it will no longer take part.

“We have been negotiating with the club for some time but have been unsuccessful which is disappointing. Public transport is already heavily subsidised by government – to the tune of about $740 million a year and it is not unreasonable to expect a commercial enterprise, like Perth Glory which benefits financially from the extra patrons that additional services deliver, must contribute to the cost of providing those services.”

Mr Hynes said Transperth was letting fans know about the changes in advance so they could plan ahead and avoid confusion and disappointment on the day.

“We understand that fans might be upset to find that they can no longer get to and from games simply by showing their ticket, but that’s something they need to take up with the Perth Glory,” he said.