Most articles about giving up driving talk about feelings. This one is about logistics.
If you have stopped driving, or you can see it coming, the single most useful thing you can do is work out how you will get to your regular places before you need to. Families who do this early find the transition far easier than families who start the day the licence goes.
Here is what is actually available on the Gold Coast.
Public transport
Fares are currently 50 cents. Queensland introduced flat 50 cent fares across public transport, which applies to buses, the G:link tram and Queensland Rail services in South East Queensland. This changed the maths for a lot of people. A week of trips costs less than a tank of fuel. Check current fares on the Translink website, because fare arrangements do change.
The tram is genuinely good. The G:link now runs from Burleigh up through Surfers Paradise, Southport and the Gold Coast University Hospital to Helensvale, where it connects with the train to Brisbane. It is level boarding, frequent, and easy to use without planning. If you live within reach of the line, a lot of your driving is replaceable.
Buses cover more than people assume. The Gold Coast bus network reaches most suburbs, though frequency varies a lot between the coastal strip and the western suburbs. If you have not looked at it in ten years, it is worth another look.
Seniors Card concessions. Queensland Seniors Card holders get concession travel, with free off-peak travel entitlements on some services. Apply for a Queensland Seniors Card if you are 65 or over and eligible, because it also unlocks a range of non-transport discounts.
Community transport
This is the option most people have never heard of, and it is often the most useful one.
Volunteering Gold Coast runs a door-to-door community transport service for people over 65 and for people under 65 living with a disability or chronic illness, including NDIS participants. Volunteer drivers take you where you need to go for a low fixed fare, and they also run social outings around the Gold Coast.
Door-to-door matters more than it sounds. The hardest part of public transport for many older people is not the bus, it is the walk to the stop and the wait in the heat.
Some churches, neighbourhood centres and RSL clubs on the Gold Coast run their own volunteer transport for members. If you belong to one, ask.
Taxis and the Taxi Subsidy Scheme
The Taxi Subsidy Scheme (TSS) pays half your taxi fare up to $30 per trip, with no limit on the number of trips. The subsidy is paid directly to the driver, so you never see the difference.
Be aware that eligibility is narrower than most people assume. It is not a scheme for anyone who has stopped driving. You have to fully meet at least one of six criteria, which include wheelchair dependence outside the home, a severe walking restriction, severe permanent vision loss in both eyes, severe uncontrolled epilepsy, or an intellectual impairment or dementia at a level that means you must be accompanied by another person at all times on public transport.
So a person with early dementia who is still travelling independently will generally not qualify, while a person whose dementia means they cannot travel unaccompanied may. A health professional completes part of the application. Full criteria and the form are on the Queensland Government Taxi Subsidy Scheme page.
Rideshare is widely available across the Gold Coast and is often cheaper than a taxi, though it needs a smartphone and a card on file. Family members frequently set this up on a parent's behalf and get the notifications themselves, which also solves the "did they get home" question.
Other cards worth knowing about
Companion Card. If you need a carer with you to participate in community activities, the Companion Card means your carer travels or attends free rather than paying a second fare or ticket.
Translink Access Pass. For people who cannot use a go card or ticketing independently due to a disability.
Vision Impairment Travel Pass. Free travel for people who meet the vision criteria.
All of these are listed on the Queensland Government subsidies and passes page.
Things that come to you instead
Worth remembering that some trips do not need to happen at all.
Groceries deliver across the Gold Coast. Most pharmacies deliver locally, and many will do a webster pack and drop it off. Pathology can often be done at home. Telehealth covers a good proportion of GP appointments, particularly follow-ups and repeat prescriptions. Home care packages and Commonwealth Home Support can include transport as a funded service.
If you are already receiving aged care support, ask your provider what transport is included in your package. It is regularly under-used because nobody mentions it.
The money side
This one surprises people, and it is worth doing on paper.
Running a car costs registration, compulsory third party, comprehensive insurance, fuel, servicing, tyres and depreciation. For most people that is well over a hundred dollars a week even for a car that barely leaves the driveway.
Set that against 50 cent public transport fares, subsidised taxis where eligible, community transport at a low fixed fare, and rideshare for the rest. A lot of households find they are financially better off, sometimes substantially. That does not make it feel better, but it does make some of the alternatives feel less extravagant.
For families
Two practical suggestions.
Do the mapping before it is needed. Write down the trips that actually matter each week. GP, specialist, pharmacy, church, bowls, the shops, the grandchildren. Then work out how each one happens without a car. Most families find that four or five trips cover almost everything, and that two or three of them are easily solved.
Do not solve it all yourself. Families often start by offering to drive everything, then quietly resent it, then the arrangement collapses. A mix of family, community transport and taxis is far more durable than one adult child doing all of it.
The bigger emotional picture is covered in worried about a parent's driving on the Gold Coast.
Frequently asked questions
I have just been told I have to stop driving. Where do I start?
Apply for a Queensland Seniors Card if you are eligible, ring Volunteering Gold Coast about community transport, and check whether you meet the Taxi Subsidy Scheme criteria. Those three cover most people's needs.
Does the Taxi Subsidy Scheme cover everyone who has lost a licence?
No. Eligibility is based on specific disability criteria, not on licence status. Read the criteria before you apply so you know where you stand.
Can I use my Seniors Card on the tram?
Yes, the G:link is part of the Translink network and concession entitlements apply.
Is there anything for people in the Hinterland suburbs?
Bus coverage is thinner out west, which makes community transport and rideshare more important there. Volunteering Gold Coast covers the Gold Coast broadly, including areas the bus network serves poorly.
What about getting to Brisbane for specialist appointments?
The tram connects to the train at Helensvale, which runs to Brisbane. For a hospital appointment, ask the clinic whether patient transport assistance is available, because for some services it is.
Could I be assessed and keep driving instead?
Possibly. Not everyone who is worried about their driving has to stop, and an assessment is how you find out. See what happens if you fail an OT driving assessment for the range of outcomes.
Ready to book an OT driving assessment on the Gold Coast? Steer Driving is a mobile assessment service covering the Gold Coast and surrounding areas. Whether you already have a referral or you're just getting started, get in touch and we'll guide you through the next steps.
This article was written by Elise, an AHPRA-registered Occupational Therapist and driver assessor. Elise is the founder of Steer Driving, a mobile OT driving assessment practice.
References
Queensland Government. (2025). Taxi Subsidy Scheme and Lift Payment. https://www.qld.gov.au/disability/out-and-about/subsidies-concessions-passes/taxi-subsidy
Translink. (2026). Tickets and fares. Queensland Government. https://translink.com.au/tickets-and-fares
