Fremantle councillor captures moment commuter is kicked off Perth train over controversial peak-hour rule

A local government councilor has captured the moment a man was escorted out of a Transperth train over a controversial rule targeting peak-hour commuters. Travelling on the Fremantle line away from Perth city, elected Fremantle councilor Adin Lang aired his frustrations to social media as he captured a gentleman “minding his own business” escorted off a train at Daglish Station on Wednesday. “Guards requested a bloke minding his own business to get off the train with his bike as it was ‘peak hour’.” As outlined on the Transperth website, manual bikes are not permitted on the train during peak times, although councilor Lang claims discretion should have been used, allowing the man to continue his commute. “Some officer discretion would have been nice in this situation, this bloke would need to wait another 1 hour 20 minutes before he was allowed back on the train with his bike,” Cr Lang told The West Australian. “As you can see by the picture, there was plenty of room for the bike and as many people know, passenger numbers thin out as you move away from the city. “If your place of work is a 20 min walk from the station vs 5 min ride — the option of the train/bike combo starts becoming a more viable transport option for those on a longer commute — and this will get more cars off the road,” Cr Lang said. Drawing similarities to the “Carmageddon” facing his local Fremantle jurisdiction, Cr Lang said “the more people we have using transport options other than cars the more people we can fit into Fremantle which supports business and creates a vibrant city.” “While I’m a councillor in Fremantle, the benefits that apply to Fremantle apply to any major centre in Perth.” “We need to encourage as many easy travel options for people besides cars, especially as the e-mobility era grows exponentially.” “This means re-thinking the ‘peak hour’ rules for bikes on trains.” “Let’s help Perth people get around without their car, it’s better for everyone,” he said. Cr Lang said he would welcome a trial on the Fremantle line where front and rear carriages were made available for bicycles and scooters during peak hour. “This has proven to be successful in other parts of the world, including Queensland, and would be a step in the right direction for integrated transport options in Perth,“ Cr Lang said. Regarding the incident, a Transperth spokesperson said the rule “reflects passenger safety concerns as well as space”. “The regulation of not allowing bicycles on peak-hour trains has been in place for many years. It is clearly explained on the website and advertised at stations.” After noticing the man on the train at Daglish station, transit officers asked the passenger to exit the carriage, where they provided the man with information regarding “alternate methods of traveling to and from work”. “As this is an offence, they boarded the service and asked the passenger to exit so they could speak with him,” a spokesperson said. “The passenger said he was unaware of the rule and needed to catch a service about the same time for the foreseeable future.” “In the interest of fairness, transit officers are not able to show discretion and allow an offence to continue once detected.” “Our officers say the interaction was pleasant and said the customer was grateful for the information provided.”