NSW Government Bans Gambling Ads On Public Transport

The NSW government has today moved to ban gambling advertisements on public transport.

The ban applies to Transport owned and controlled assets, including advertisements inside and outside trains, metro, buses, light rail, train stations, and ferry terminals. This includes 798 advertising boards at Sydney train stations, 49 road facing digital billboards, adverts on up to 3,711 urban buses, 76 trams and across the Tangara train fleet.

The required changes will be implemented over the next 12 months, with the NSW Government working with multiple advertising contract holders.

“Gambling advertising has been a common sight on our public transport for a couple of years now, and I’m pleased our Government is taking action to remove it,” said Minister for Transport, Jo Haylen.

“Parents are rightly worried about the impact it has on their kids, so it’s not something that we think that needs to be on our transport network.”

These bans are the latest efforts by the Minns government to reduce gambling harm, which include the establishment of an Independent Panel to conduct a trial of cashless gaming in pubs and clubs throughout 2024, and the commitment of $100 million to invest in harm minimisation strategies such as research, treatment, services and reform.

Ban welcomed by advocacy groups

The NSW Council of Social Services (NCOSS) has welcomed the move, and have called for further action to reduce gambling harm.

“We are pleased to see the NSW Government removing gambling ads from its stations, billboards, buses, trams and trains,” said NCOSS CEO Cara Varian.

“We know the devastating impact that gambling harm has on our community, and any step towards reducing its prevalence is a good thing.

“However, if the NSW Government is serious about reducing gambling harm, they should implement mandatory cashless gaming on our poker machines, as recommended in the Independent Panel on Gaming Reform Report.”

“NSW sadly leads the nation in poker machine losses, with more than $8.1 billion lost in 2023 (or $1,000 for every adult and child in the state), which is the highest per capita poker machine loss in the world.

“We commend the Government for its announcement today, but we encourage it to ramp up its efforts and implement stronger gambling reform measures.”