I was delighted when the Seniors’ Opal card was announced and applied for one immediately. I deposited an amount in my Opal card account and selected automatic top-up. I subsequently received an email to say that as I had automatic top-up, I did not need to have any money in my account, and the amount I had deposited was refunded to me.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Yesterday I tried to use my Opal card for the first time at North Wollongong station, only to find that it wouldn’t work due to insufficient money in my account. I approached the station master assuming I would be able to top up at the station, only to be told that they ‘‘have nothing to do with the Opal card’’ and that there was a telephone number I could call.
At this stage, I gave up and bought the old-style train ticket. What a disappointment. I do not understand why Transport NSW has made the introduction of the Opal so complicated. It has only served to leave their customers confused and frustrated.
P J Howes, Towradgi
In the Lindt cafe shootings two people died because the police did not shoot the perpetrator when they had the chance. Large demonstrations ensued, mostly in Australia.
Charlie Hebdo magazine deliberately set out to upset and annoy people and succeeded beyond their dreams. Twelve dead. Massive demonstrations around the globe.
Some 132 innocent children are killed by the Taliban in Pakistan. Barely a ripple; just something to tut about around the water cooler.
This says two things about the people who demonstrated. They are racists who are not moved to march when some natives in a far-off land kill each other.
They are frightened.
Oh, my non-existent God, it might happen to me.
The terrorists must be overjoyed.
John Gartside, Kanahooka
At a meeting of the Combined Pensioners Association in November 2014, the subject of pensioners’ concessions arose.
As the federal government stopped the funding of these concessions to the states, most of the state governments, to my knowledge, said they would cover these concessions.
At the conference in Sydney, the Minister for Ageing for NSW said they were only guaranteed until March 2015.
It is up to us, as pensioners, to put pressure on our local members and the Premier, to give a decision on this before the election.
Russell Lewis, Barbara Lewis, Dapto
If there was ever an award to be handed down on Australia Day for supporting illegal dumping, then Wollongong City Council would win it hands down.
This collection of ‘‘tourism only, at any cost, and blow the rest’’ civic leaders, sits idly by and does absolutely nothing to catch illegal dumpers who every day dump loads of rubbish at charity bins and bush locations, knowing full well that nobody is going to lift a finger to stop them.
At the charity bin site behind the Shell Service Station in Corrimal, the local hoons are now building man traps and barricades out of rubbish to deliberately injure members of the public and damage their vehicles tyres, totally ignored by council rangers.
Either this council gets fair dinkum about catching dumpers or the whole lot of them should quit.
Dave Cox, Corrimal