Newsletter item – Tourism Industry Council Tasmania (TICT), 24 November 2021
Let’s #FillOurSpirits in 2022
Tasmania’s peak tourism body today launched a campaign to ‘Fill Our Spirits in 2022’ – urging the Australian Government to bring back the ‘Free Car Fares’ Initiative that so successfully filled the Spirit of Tasmania ships over the first half of this year.
Tourism Industry Council Tasmania (TICT) CEO, Luke Martin, said the tourism industry would campaign right up to the next year’s Federal Election urging both sides of politics to commit to permanently extending the Bass Strait Passenger Vehicle Equalisation Scheme (BSPVES).
The BSPVES is a payment made by the Australian Government to TT Line for every vehicle transported across Bass Strait in lieu of a Commonwealth funded National Highway existing between Victoria and Tasmania.
“This is about equality for Tasmania, while turbo charging our state’s economic recovery from Covid,” Mr Martin said.
“The Free Car Fares initiative was a spectacular success over the first half of 2021, kick starting tourism visitation into Tasmania’s regional communities until the Victoria and NSW borders shut in winter.
“But we saw during those six months just how effective this initiative was in stimulating demand for the Spirits and ensuring Tasmania can compete with the other states for the driving holiday market.”
Mr Martin said restoring the value of the BSPVES was something every Tasmanian politician should get behind.
“The BSPVES was introduced by John Howard on the simple principle that it should cost the same to take your vehicle across Bass Strait, as it does to drive the same distance anywhere in Australia on the federally-funded National Highway Network.
“Unfortunately, because the BSPVES was not indexed for over a decade it has lot some of its relative value and today taking your car across Bass Strait is significantly more expensive than driving the same distance between Victoria and South Australia.
“This is unfair for Tasmania, and for our tourism industry in competing with other destinations on the mainland.”
Mr Martin said extending the BSPVES would be transformative for regional Tasmania.
“We know visitors who arrive by sea stay longer, spend significantly more and disperse further into regional Tasmania.
“We have two magnificent new Spirit of Tasmania ships being built that will need to be filled, and in the meantime the current ships can do more daytime sailings to meet demand.
“Right now, making it cheaper to bring your own vehicle across Bass Strait will immediately alleviate the problem with limited hire cars in the state that is presenting as a real hand-brake on our Covid recovery.
“John Howard introducing the BSPVES in 1996 was a game changer for Tasmania, kick-starting the emergence of the modern Tasmanian tourism industry and making Bass Strait travel more affordable for everyone.
“The opportunity presents now for Scott Morrison and Anthony Albanese to define their own piece of history, and pave the way for a new generation of tourism investment and jobs in regional Tasmania.”
The estimated cost of extending the BSPVES is around $20-million per annum.
