A pop-up kiosk at St Leonards on Monday morning. Credit:Beau Giles Fairfax Media, meanwhile, confirmed with Transport for NSW on Monday that the government would not allow existing Sydney Trains staff to sell Opal cards over the counter at train stations. This has left some flabbergasted, with shadow transport minister Penny Sharpe saying it was a waste of existing taxpayer resources.

"I think it's a waste of money; it's a duplication of resources and fundamentally it's bad customer service," Ms Sharpe said. Ms Sharpe added that staff at counters were often asked about Opal cards but were forbidden to help, leaving customers unhappy. The NSW branch secretary of the Rail, Tram and Bus Union, Alex Claassens, said he understood contract staff were selling tickets at the kiosks. "Almost 100 ticket-seller jobs have been slashed and yet the government is spending money on contractors to do the same job," he said. "This government will go to any length to contract out or privatise - this is just the latest example."

People using their Opal cards cannot add value to them at train stations. They need to do so either online, by phone or at authorised retailers, which, at some stations, are a significant walk away. The government has already indicated it will get rid of ticket-selling staff as the Opal card is rolled out. Ms Sharpe said 72 already had been made redundant. The kiosks will be used until the end of September. From the start of that month the government will no longer sell 14 types of paper-based tickets, including the third most commonly sold rail ticket: the cheaper adult off-peak return ticket. On Mondays and Tuesdays, the kiosks selling the Opal card will be at: Ashfield, Bankstown, Blacktown, Bondi Junction, Burwood, Campsie, Central, Chatswood, Circular Quay, Edgecliff, Epping, Hornsby, Hurstville, Kings Cross, Lidcombe, Liverpool, Macquarie University, Martin Place, Newtown, North Sydney, Parramatta, Penrith, Redfern, Rockdale, St Leonards, Strathfield, Town Hall and Wynyard stations.

On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday they will be at: Bondi Junction, Central, Chatswood, Hurstville, Kings Cross, Lidcombe, Parramatta, Strathfield and Town Hall stations. A Transport for NSW spokesman said nine of the stations would have pop-up kiosks available on Monday to Friday. "Soon Opal will be available for customers at 1000 retail stores across Sydney and the regions. This is considered the most effective approach to introducing the Opal card for customers across Sydney and the regions," the spokesman said. Despite the government's announcement, there was no kiosk at Wynyard station on Monday morning because contract staff there had not yet been trained to use one. Holders of existing Opal cards will not be able to add credit to them at the kiosks. And people wanting to buy cards from the kiosks will not be able to use cash, meaning their credit or debit card transaction could be linked to the card.

In Victoria, anonymous myki cards can be purchased from a number of outlets, including newsagencies and 7Eleven stores. Commuters have the option to register the cards to their name online. The news that unregistered Opal cards are now available is likely to be welcomed by civil libertarians, who had been advocating for their introduction following Fairfax's revelation that no warrants are required by law enforcement to access commuters' travel histories. Despite this, NSW Greens MP David Shoebridge said he wanted commuters to be given the option to opt out of having their travel data given to law enforcement without a warrant. Mr Shoebridge added that the unregistered cards still weren't anonymous in his view as people's identities could be linked to them by law enforcement via CCTV or Eftpos transactions, as stated in the Opal privacy policy. Law enforcement agencies that can access Opal records without a warrant include state, territory and federal police, the NSW Crime Commission, the Australian Crime Commission, the Department of Corrective Services, the Department of Juvenile Justice and the Office of the Sheriff of NSW, as well as state, territory and federal directors of public prosecutions.