Chief Minister Andrew Barr has conceded the ACT government should have postponed the launch of the MyWay+ public transport ticketing system, which faced widespread issues after going live. The system, introduced last Wednesday, caused commuter chaos as many struggled to tap on and off or scan QR codes to register trips.
The rollout has dominated the first sitting week of the new Legislative Assembly, with all members voting to refer the matter to an assembly committee for an inquiry. Transport Canberra says many of the initial problems have since been resolved.
In an interview with Stateline ACT, Barr acknowledged the rollout fell short of expectations. "In hindsight, it would clearly have benefited from several more days of testing," he said. Transport Minister Chris Steel had earlier told the assembly he was advised weeks before the launch that Transport Canberra had "a high degree of confidence" in the new system.
During the transition from the old MyWay system to MyWay+, the government made public transport free. This period coincided with the election campaign, and the inquiry will examine the timing of the transition, which also aligned with the end of the 3G network used by the old system.
The ACT Greens supported the inquiry motion, a move Barr said was unsurprising given they moved to the crossbench after the last election. "It probably means they've put themselves in a position of less responsibility for outcomes," he said, adding they can now be critics more than when they had governing responsibilities.
Barr expressed openness to negotiating with the Canberra Liberals on contentious issues but warned against blocking for political reasons, noting the risk is lower than in the federal Senate, where Labor has criticized the federal Greens as obstructionist on key legislation.
