Member for Hawkesbury Dominic Perrottet has reminded parents they may need to apply for a School Opal card if their child’s circumstances have changed for the 2016 school year.
The School Opal card replaces the old paper School Student Transport Scheme (SSTS) travel pass, and while most students will receive their new Opal card automatically, there are some parents who will need to apply.
“If your child is starting Kindergarten, going into Year 3 or Year 7, moved house, or has changed schools or campuses – you need to apply for a School Opal card. For everyone else, the card will be ready to be picked up at school for the start of term,” Mr Perrottet said.
“More than five million Opal cards are already in use, and now we’re expanding Opal to give school students the same kind of convenience.
“For families where there is shared parental responsibility, a single School Opal card can be set to work for both parents’ homes ensuring convenience and peace of mind.”
“As parents are busy ticking off their ‘back to school’ lists we want to make sure that the School Opal card is on that list.”
The School Opal card enables free travel for eligible students from more than 2,000 schools travelling on public transport across Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, Hunter, Illawarra and Southern Highlands.
Eligibility criteria and information about the School Opal card can be found together with the application form online at transportnsw.info/school-students.