Number of Victorians contacting the PTO stabilises, volume of case resolutions rise
First published 18 December 2024
Data released in the Public Transport Ombudsman (PTO) Annual Report 2024 shows a stabilisation in the number of Victorians contacting the PTO for assistance, and an increased volume of cases being resolved, Public Transport Ombudsman Ms. Ann Jorgensen said today.
A total of 3,093 people approached the PTO for assistance in 2023-24, down slightly on 3,192 approaches in 2022-23. In 2022-23 the PTO had experienced a 62 per cent increase in approaches, mirroring the increase in public transport use as pandemic restrictions eased throughout 2022.
“Although the number of people who contacted my office was down three per cent this year, we saw a 17 per cent uptick in the number of complaints resolved through conciliation and investigation,” Ms Jorgensen said. The PTO resolved 478 conciliation and investigation cases in 2023-24, up from 409 the previous year.
The top five issues Victorians most frequently reported to the PTO were, in order of frequency, issues related to:
- Public transport staff (1,126 people reported this issue)
- Service delivery (799 people reported this issue)
- Myki ticketing (534 people reported this issue)
- Land and infrastructure (499 people reported this issue)
- Public transport vehicles, ie: trams, trains or buses (337 people reported this issue)
These five issues represented 77 per cent of all public transport issues reported to the PTO in 2023-24.
Ms Jorgensen said that 2023-24 was also the PTO’s second year of handling complaints about the fairness of public transport fines under an agreement with the Department of Transport and Planning (DTP). The PTO can help people with a fine in some circumstances if a person's internal review application has been unsuccessful.
A total of 186 Victorians contacted the PTO about fines in 2023-24, representing the sixth most frequent issue raised with the PTO.
For a full summary of key information contained in PTO Annual Report 2024, or to download the Report in full, head to our Annual Report page.