Travelling in Australia

Getting around

From Public Transportation, trains, or just walking from place to place, there are plenty of options for you to get around in Australia:


Transportation

Public transportation

Australia has plenty of transportation option to get you from point A to point B.  Australia’s public transportation system is safe and affordable (in some cases, its even free).  From trains, buses, trams and ferries.  


Sydney:

For information on buses, ferries and trains you can visit www.13100.com.au

Bus: Sydney’s bus network extends to most of the suburbs area.  www.sydneybuses.info

Ferry:  there are 3 different kind: regular STA ferries, fast Jet Cats that go to manly and river cats that traverse the Parramatta River to Parramatta.  www.sydneyferries.info

Metro Light Rail & Monorail: MLR operates 24 hours a day between Central Station and Pyrmont via Darling Harbor and Chinatown.  www.metrotranport.com.au

Train: Trains run from 5 am to midnight.  www.cityrail.info


Melbourne:

www.metlinkmelbourne.com.au

Met cards: allow you to travel on any and all Melbourne bus, train and tram services.  

Trains: they do not go into many of the inner suburbs but you can find it at  Flinders St Station is the main suburban terminal; starting at 5am and finish at midnight.  


Bus: Buses continue from the trains finish up at and is great for shopping and other locations that are a must like hospital visits.

Tram:  it covers the inner suburbs.  


Brisbane:  

www.transinfo.qld.gov.au

Boat:  Brisbane’s City Cat catamarans run every 20 to 30 minutes, between 5:50 am to 10:30pm, from the University of Queensland in the southwest to Bretts.  

Bus:  runs every 10 minutes on weekdays between 7am and 6pm.  Or Monday to Fridays from 5 am to 6pm.  
Train:  runs as far as Gympie North in the north (for the sunshine coast) and Nerand and Robina in the south (for the Gold Coast).  


Perth:

www.transpert.wa.gov.au

Boat: Ferries depart every half-hour, from 5am to 7pm on a daily base from the Barrack St Jetty to the zoo.

Bus:  You runs from 6:50 am to 6:20 pm on weekdays.

Train: All local trains’ leaves from the Perth train station on Wellington St.


Adelaide:

The Adelaide metro Information Centre has timetables and sells ticket for the integrated metropolitan buses, trains and the Glenelg tram.  www.adelaidemetro.com.au

Bus: from Glenelg tram terminus at Victoria Square to the City West campus of the University of South Australia.  

Train:  Suburban trains depart from Adelaide Railway Terminal by the casino.


Darwin:

Bus: Darwin bus runs a service from its small deport.
www.tourtub.com.au

Taxi:  Darwin has two taxi bus services- Arafura Shuttle and unique Minibus.


Hobart:

Bus:  Metro operates the local bus network
www.metrotas.com.au


Canberra:

Bus:  Alinga St, East Row and Mort St in the city centre is where you can find the busses.  For free route maps and timetables www.action.act.gov.au.
 

Personal safety on public transport

Even though public transportation is safe in Australia you should still execute the necessary precaution as you would at home.  Keep your bag close to you, observe your where about, who is around you, and keep your wallet, cell phone, iPod’s out of sight. If you’re traveling at night sit close to the driver, and just keep your eyes open.

Never hang around the train station or bus stations at night, if you must get on public transportation at night try to arrive right before the train deports to minimize the amount of waiting and if you have a buddy or a friend, use the ‘buddy system’.


Traveling interstate

Australia is a big continent, almost as big as the United States.  You will be able to travel by buses, trains and other methods of transportation but be aware that some can be costly.


Airlines

The two major airlines in Australia are Qantas (www.qantas.com.au) and Virgin Blue (www.virginblue.com.au).  These airlines fly between all capital cities and many regional centers.  Australia has several regional airline carriers.  Jet star (www.jetstar.com.au) is the low-cost airlines affiliated with Qantas and Tiger Airways (tigerairways.com.au) flies to most Australian capitals and some regional cities, as well as REX (www.rex.com.au) carries passengers to mostly regional areas in New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia.


 
Trains and buses

For traveling outside the city you live in you can also hop on a train and take a ride.  You can find a comprehensive list of train services, fairs and timetables at www.railaustralia.com.au.

For a list of that operating with Australia, visit www.buslines.com.au


Your own transportation

At some point during your stay you might decide to purchase your own vehicle or transportation, such as in a second hand bicycle, that can be purchase for about $200 and a good second hand car can be found for less than $10,000.  And if you are purchasing a second hand vehicle remember it’s always best to have it inspected by a reputable mechanic to ensure it is working appropriately; According to the Australian Government guide for international students.

Just like in every location when you buy a car you are responsible for registration, repairs, fuel, insurance, accidents, parking and service costs.  It is compulsory to buy third party insurance which will cover the damage to other cars or property if you have an accident.  You can also take out an insurance policy that covers the cost for damage to your vehicle.  The cost varies from location to location, and your age, driving record and the type of car you own plays a factor.

If you will be in Australia for a period of no more than three months, you can drive with an international driver’s license or a valid overseas driver’s license.  You must carry a translation if the document is not in English.  If you however plan to stay longer than the three months you will need to obtain an Australian drivers license by taking a test on highway codes and regulations.

Australians drive on the left side of the road and the maximum speed limit is 50km an hour in residential areas and 100km an hour on highways, unless the sign indicates otherwise.   Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs is a serious offence, punishable by loss of license and sometimes it ends up with time in jail.  Random breath testing, where the police stop your vehicle and measure the amount of alcohol you have consumed happens frequently, be prepared and always be a safe driver.  For information on alcohol limits visit www.alcoholguidelines.gov.au.

Traffic cameras are in use at many intersections to monitor speeding cars or cars that do not stop at a red light you can be fine and lose points off of your license.

 
Seat belts for drivers and all passengers are compulsory; and when using cell phones pull over to the side of the road.