Frequently asked questions

We offer a range of day, commuter and leisure tickets that will get you to where you want to go. Our extensive network is ideal for both leisure travellers and commuters, and our array of tickets offer you convenience, flexibility and great savings.

For information on which ticket is best for you, please visit the Tickets section.

Concession travel is available to a wide section of the community including students, jobseekers, apprentices, the vision or hearing impaired, war widows and widowers, and NSW Seniors Card holders.

For more information please refer to the Concessions section.

Concession tickets can be purchased from the ticket office and in most cases from a ticket vending machine.

If you are travelling on a concession ticket you must carry your valid concession card at all times to prove you are entitled to the concession. Examples of valid concession cards include Australian State Pensioner Concession Cards or the NSW Seniors Card.

Fines apply to persons travelling on a concession ticket for which they are not entitled.

A step-by-step guide to using CityRail ticket vending machines can be found on the Purchasing tickets page. Instructions can also be found on the front of each ticket vending machine.

Station staff will also be happy to assist you with the ticket vending machine.

In such circumstances you are permitted to purchase a ticket at your destination by explaining your situation to ticketing staff.

If transit officers are checking tickets, they will verify if ticketing facilities were available at the station.

Off-peak fares generally apply after 9.00am on weekdays or at any time on weekends and public holidays. However, if you are travelling from outlying areas, customers are permitted to purchase off-peak fares for some trains departing prior to 9.00am.

For a list of services that are "Approved off-peak trains before 9.00am", please refer to the CityRail Passenger Fares and Coaching Rates Handbook.

CityRail is not obligated to refund or replace lost, stolen or mislaid tickets. The decision whether to refund or replace a lost, stolen or mislaid ticket is at the sole discretion of the designated Ticketing Manager.

For MyTrain or MyMulti monthly, quarterly or yearly tickets, you can apply online for a substitute ticket, stating when and, as far as possible, the circumstances in which the ticket was lost. Fees apply.

For more information please refer to the CityRail Passenger Fares and Coaching Rates Handbook.

Rail services are already heavily subsidised by the community. The price of a full fare train ticket represents around one quarter of the total cost of providing the service. It would be unfair to further subsidise rail services by providing off-peak fares for everyone travelling throughout this period. Doing so would also disadvantage customers who purchase MyTrain and MyMulti weekly, monthly, quarterly or yearly tickets.

Due to the high costs involved in running these services (even when running an amended timetable), in addition to staffing and maintenance costs during holiday periods, it is not viable for an off-peak fare to be charged over these days.

CountryLink operates coach services between Lithgow and Bathurst on the Blue Mountains Line.

If you wish to travel to Lithgow, Wallerawang, Mt Lambie, Meadow Flat, Yetholme, Raglan, Kelso and Bathurst you need to ring CountryLink on 13 22 32 to reserve your seat on the coach. This also applies in the reverse direction.

Reservations may be made up to 14 days in advance. You will be issued with a booking reference number, which will confirm your seat/s on the coach.

On the day of travel purchase your ticket from a CityRail Booking Office or Ticket Vending Machine and present your CityRail ticket and CountryLink booking reference number when boarding the coach.

If your ticket is for 28 days or less, simply use it as a flash pass at gated stations. For MyTrain or MyMulti quarterly or yearly tickets, you can apply online for a substitute ticket.

In the first instance speak with your local Station Manager who will be able to assist. Or you may wish to contact Transport Info on 131 500.

Our fares are distance based and calculated via the shortest route of travel. Distances are separated into five bands (up to 10km, 10-20km, 20-35km, 35-65km and over 65km).

The minimum adult single fare is $3.40, while the longest possible journey, Scone to Goulburn (a distance of 513.54km) costs just $8.20.

Heavily discounted off-peak fares apply after 9.00am on weekdays or at any time on weekends and public holidays. Tickets for frequent users are also heavily discounted - the longer the period you choose, the more money you will save.

Our fares are regulated by the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART). For further information visit http://www.ipart.nsw.gov.au.

Setting fares has several competing objectives. They include ensuring an equitable split of costs between passengers and taxpayers; maximising public transport patronage for environmental and social benefits; and ensuring sufficient revenue to fund operations and improvements.

Tickets are available from ticket offices and at over 450 ticket vending machines (TVMs) throughout the CityRail network.
Ticket vending machines accept 10 cent, 20 cent, 50 cent, $1 and $2 coins and/or $5, $10, $20, and $50 notes. Please note that a maximum of $19.90 is given in change, so $50 notes can only be used to purchase tickets with a value of $30.10 or greater.

TVMs can accept notes in any orientation, so it doesn't matter which way you insert the notes into the machine.

A limit applies to the amount of coins accepted:

• 10c, 20c and 50c coins - combined maximum of $5.00
• $1 coins - combined maximum of $10.00
• $2 coins - combined maximum of $20.00

For further information visit Purchasing tickets.

Credit cards
You may use your credit card to pay for MyTrain and MyMulti (monthly, quarterly and yearly) tickets online. Additionally, credit card facilities are available on selected TVM's at our busier stations.

Eftpos
You may pay for your tickets at some ticket offices and some ticket vending machines by eftpos. For your convenience, there is no minimum purchase amount or surcharge for card transactions.

Lost, stolen or misplaced School or TAFE College Rail Passes and other student identification cards can be replaced by completing application forms obtained from the school/tafe. A replacement fee applies.

Vision Impaired Persons passes or Assistance Animal permits can be renewed through RailCorp at no cost.

Other passes and concession cards are managed by other organisations: Pensioner Concession Card (Centrelink and Department of Veterans Affairs); Seniors Card (Seniors Card Scheme); War Widow/er Concession Card (Department of Veterans Affairs).

For further information contact RailCorp Passes and Concessions (phone 1300 302 130).

This is dependent on the type of special event. Please refer to your ticket seller for further information.

Tickets to major sporting events and the Sydney Royal Easter Show at Sydney Olympic Park generally include the cost of return travel on public transport.

Information on events which include CityRail travel as part of the ticket is advertised on this website.

RailCorp does not guarantee the departure or arrival time of its services. Therefore, claims for refunds are assessed on a case by case basis.

On the spot refunds are available for single and return tickets when lodged at the issuing station (booking office) at the discretion of the salesperson. A time limit of 30 minutes for suburban services or within a reasonable time for non-suburban services applies.

Alternatively, a refund form may be completed and submitted online to RailCorp's Ticketing Manager for processing.

Refunds are not available when a ticket has been used for travel or in the event of trackwork, as we provide alternative transport during these periods.

Full details on RailCorp's refund policy can be found in the CityRail Passenger Fares and Coaching Rates Handbook.

Yes. Transit officers have the right to confiscate concession cards that are blank, incomplete, being misused or breaching any of the card's conditions. Proof of identity may also be required.

CityRail has an extensive and complex network. Because of this, there are instances where there can be more than one route of travel available between an origin and destination station.

For details about approved routes of travel, please refer to the CityRail Passenger Fares and Coaching Rates Handbook.

Yes. However, you must have a valid CountryLink ticket and reserve a seat on CountryLink.

Customers wishing to travel between CityRail locations on CountryLink services should contact CountryLink on 13 22 32 for booking conditions and seating availability.

Simply purchase an extension ticket. For example, you have an Ashfield to the City MyTrain weekly, but you want to travel to Burwood on your way home this afternoon. Just go to the Ticket Office at your City station, present your MyTrain weekly and ask for a Single or Return ticket from Ashfield to Burwood.

Remember, it is not acceptable to purchase the additional travel at your destination station. This may incur a fine.

Customers with tickets to the City can travel to or from Central, Town Hall, Wynyard, Circular Quay, Martin Place, Kings Cross, St. James and Museum stations. For example, if you have a Bankstown to the City MyTrain weekly you can alight at any of the above stations. You are also permitted to join your train from any of the above stations.

Tickets to Central are not generally available for travel to City stations. Check with station staff when purchasing your ticket.

This is when you exit a station before the destination shown on your ticket and rejoin the train at a later time. For example, you have a ticket from Sutherland to the City. You get off the train at Hurstville and leave the station. At some time later the same day, you go back to Hurstville station and continue your journey to the City. This is known as a break of journey.

Break of journey is generally not permitted on single and return tickets. However, it is on tickets of longer duration. If you need to break your journey, ask staff before buying your ticket or contact 131 500.

Renew your weekly MyTrain and MyMulti at any Ticket Vending Machine with our 'Top Up' facility. Just insert your present MyTrain or MyMulti in the 'Top Up' slot, pay the fare and collect a new ticket with any change. This instantly adds seven more days to your weekly MyTrain or MyMulti ticket.

If you purchase a MyTrain weekly or fortnightly ticket after 3.00pm, you can travel that afternoon and for the duration of the ticket. MyTrain tickets are available any day of the week.

The same as banks don't provide rail services, we don't provide banking functions. Therefore, there is a limit on the amount of coins we will accept for ticket purchases.

That limit being:

• Bronze coins are not accepted
• 5c, 10c, 20c and 50c coins, combined maximum of $5.00
• $1 coins, maximum of $10.00
• $2 coins, maximum of $20.00

This is caused as a result of the machine running out of change. Usually the situation will rectify itself as coins used by customers to purchase their ticket are recycled to the change dispenser. Our staff can also replenish the change as required.

All ticket machines are self reporting and advise our control centre when they encounter a problem.

The limit of $19.90 was seen to be appropriate; given ticket machines are unable to dispense notes. It was felt the burden of additional change was unreasonable and would deplete the machine of change too quickly.

The note handling mechanism in the machine is not capable of dispensing notes as change. When our ticket machines were originally developed there were no units capable of dispensing notes as change.