00:00A flight from Northwest WA to Perth can cost thousands.
00:07The remote mining town of Karratha, already one of the country's most expensive places to live,
00:13some locals can ill afford a potential airfare increase.
00:18Trying to factor in cost of living, house insurance, car insurance, private health.
00:26Since 2022, fares have been capped to provide some relief to regional residents travelling to Perth.
00:33Capped fares range from $199 to $299 one way.
00:39But the costs of future flights remain uncertain.
00:42The Government has committed to renewing the scheme beyond June 30th next year,
00:47but residents planning ahead say the current rate isn't available.
00:51When I went on to search, the 30th of June showed flights at $299.
00:58And then when I checked to the 1st of July, I want to travel in July,
01:02they've bumped up to $510 one way.
01:06The only transport alternative, a 16 hour drive.
01:09The ABC has repeatedly asked Transport Minister Rita Safiotti if regional residents could expect airfares to go up.
01:17But she did not answer questions about costs into the future.
01:21While advocates for the scheme admit a small increase is reasonable.
01:26The best outcome would be to have no increase at all.
01:28But I think it's quite acceptable to have an increase that's in line with inflation.
01:32The WA government says it will give more information on the capped airfare schemes extension before the end of the year.
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