Free bus trips for NSW commuters as part of driver strike action

Hundreds of thousands of New South Wales commuters will travel for free on buses today, as drivers step up strike action.

Three bus operator companies including Transit Systems, Transdev and ComfortDelGro will switch off Opal card machines — meaning free trips for passengers.

It comes as part of ongoing strike action from bus drivers to improve pay and conditions across the industry.

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Up to 200,000 commuters are predicted to enjoy free trips.

The suburbs in the city that may see fare-free travel include Liverpool, Fairfield, Parramatta, Cronulla, Engadine, Sutherland, Menai, Hornsby, Gordon, Berowra, Lidcombe, Granville, the Hills District, Frenchs Forest, Terrey Hills, St Ives and Belrose.

Outside the city centre, other suburbs include Maitland, Raymond Terrace, Lake Macquarie, Blue Mountains, Wyong, Tuggerah and Queanbeyan.

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Transport Workers Union (TWU) secretary Richard Olsen called the NSW Government to "show their appreciation" of bus drivers' hard work through the pandemic.

"Bus drivers stepped up massively during the pandemic, and now they are calling on the state government to support them by agreeing to the reasonable pay and conditions being sought," he said.

Mr Olsen also flagged the possibility of the action continuing beyond tomorrow if drivers' requests were not met.

"The ball is in the state government's court now," Mr Olsen said.

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Bus drivers are calling for same-pay protections as the current system apparently sees some drivers receiving lower pay and conditions than others working in the same depot and driving the same routes.

It comes as trains and buses have seen ongoing strike action over the past few months.