Labour is promising a public transport fare cap at $20 a week in the country's three biggest cities and $10 for the rest of New Zealand.
The election campaign promise would give travellers on buses, trains and some ferries unlimited usage with a cost cap at $20 in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch and a weekly cost cap at $10 elsewhere.
The party has costed it at $65 million a year, and InterCity buses, Capital Connection, Te Huia, Mainlander and Waiheke ferries are not included.
Labour leader Chris Hipkins said should Labour come into power at the next election, the policy would kick in from mid-2027
"Once a commuter has reached their fare cap, every additional trip that week is free," he said.
The party's transport spokesperson Tangi Utikere said they wanted people catching buses, trains and ferries "more often because that means lower household transport costs, less congestion on our roads and stronger public transport networks".
National’s Campaign Chair Simeon Brown described the promise as Labour "once again trying to bribe New Zealanders with their own money".
"This is yet another spending promise from the Labour Party with no plan for how they’ll pay for it."
“The National Land Transport Fund is already oversubscribed. The idea of siphoning a quarter of a billion dollars from the NLTF to pay for this is fanciful. Ultimately this policy will require higher taxes or more borrowing," he said.
“This comes on top of billions of dollars in other spending promises they have made with no way to pay for it – such as restoring pay equity, unwinding public sector savings, and how they will pay for their Future Fund."
If he could ensure that the $65m a year would cover the additional patronage the policy could result in, Utikere said, "based on the information we have, yes".
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