Getting around Canberra: light rail, buses and MyWay+

Canberra runs on a single, integrated public transport network called Transport Canberra. It brings buses and light rail together under one ticketing system, so a single tap can carry you across the city and between modes. Whether you have just moved to the capital or you are rethinking how you get to work, here is how the pieces fit together.

Light rail: Gungahlin to the City

Canberra's light rail line opened on 20 April 2019 and runs about 12 kilometres along Northbourne Avenue, linking the northern town centre of Gungahlin to the city centre at Alinga Street. There are 14 stops along the corridor, including major interchanges at Gungahlin Place and Dickson. At peak times services run frequently, up to every five minutes, which makes the line a reliable spine for commuters travelling into and out of the city.

The light rail is a smooth, step-free ride and connects directly with bus services at key stops, so you can switch from one to the other without buying a new ticket. Future stages are planned to extend the network further south towards the Parliamentary Zone and Woden, and construction works can occasionally mean temporary changes to services, so it is worth checking the Transport Canberra website before you travel.

Buses across the city

Buses remain the backbone of the network and reach far more of Canberra than the light rail line alone. The bus network connects the town centres of Belconnen, Woden, Tuggeranong and Gungahlin, along with the city, the universities, hospitals and the suburbs in between. Rapid routes run frequently along the busiest corridors, while local routes feed into the larger interchanges where you can connect to a Rapid service or the light rail.

If you are planning a trip, the Transport Canberra journey planner will map your route door to door, combining buses and light rail and giving you live timing. It is the simplest way to work out the fastest option, especially if your journey crosses more than one town centre.

Park and ride and kiss and ride

For people who drive part of the way, park and ride car parks let you leave the car and continue by public transport. Along the light rail corridor there are park and ride facilities at EPIC, Well Station Drive and Swinden Street, so you can drive in from the north, park, and take the light rail into the city. Kiss and ride zones, where a driver can quickly drop off or pick up a passenger, are also provided at many stops and interchanges. Both options can save you the cost and hassle of parking in the city centre.

Paying with MyWay+

The whole network uses a ticketing system called MyWay+, and there are several ways to pay. You can tap on with a contactless Visa or Mastercard, either a physical card or a digital card stored on your phone or watch. You can also use a MyWay+ pass, which is a digital ticket inside the MyWay+ app, buy a single use ticket for individual or group travel, or pick up a physical MyWay+ card from a retail outlet and top it up.

However you choose to pay, the golden rule is simple. Tap on at a MyWay+ validator when you start your trip and tap off at a validator when you finish, and use the same payment method at both ends so the system charges you the correct fare. Validators are fitted on every bus and at every light rail stop. Concession fares are available for eligible passengers, and details on eligibility and how to apply are on the Transport Canberra website.

Before you travel

Timetables, maps, fares and any temporary service changes are all published by Transport Canberra, and the journey planner is the best place to start for a specific trip. A little planning goes a long way, and once you have the MyWay+ basics sorted, getting around Canberra becomes one of the easier parts of life in the capital.