Public transport on the streets of Luxembourg
Instead of cars, citizens are being encouraged to switch to public transport. According to Deutsche Welle, the situation in Germany is currently being discussed not only in connection with global warming and climate change, but also against the backdrop of Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine. In response to rising fuel prices, the German government has taken a number of measures to ease the situation for residents who have to increase their spending on transport and food.
One such measure is a 9-euro travel ticket. It is intended to ease the financial burden on residents of Germany and motivate them to switch from private to public transport. How this will work in practice remains to be seen. However, some European countries have already accumulated some experience in promoting public transport.
Luxembourg
“Luxembourg is the first country in the world to make mobility free,” the Luxembourg government emphasizes on its website. The small duchy abolished paid tickets for public transport on March 1, 2020. Not only local residents but also guests and tourists can use public transport for free. Luxembourg has a record number of commuters coming from neighboring countries.
Luxembourg's Minister of Transport François Bausch called the transition to free public transport an important social measure. The government wants to turn the country, whose population has increased by 40 percent in 20 years, into a so-called “mobility laboratory.”
As for the dynamics of passenger traffic since the introduction of free public transport, there is no official statistics yet. The restrictive measures during the coronavirus pandemic, introduced immediately after public transport was declared free, distort the statistics of the first months. Free public transport in Luxembourg is financed from the state budget.
Malta
Malta plans to introduce free public transport from October 1, 2022. Thus, it will become the second European country to abolish ticket sales. The government announced its plans back in October 2021, during the budget discussion. One of the goals is to reduce people's dependence on cars, explained Bertrand Borg, editor of the well-known Maltese newspaper Times of Malta.
Free transport in Malta is financed through taxes. All residents who have issued special travel tickets will be able to use public transport for free in the future. If tourists want to take advantage of this offer, they will need to arrange tickets in advance, before arriving in the country.
Belgium, Hasselt
Not only countries but also individual cities and communities are resorting to abolishing payment for public transport. The Belgian city of Hasselt gained international fame mainly after abolishing fares for public transport back in 1997.
This initiative lasted for several years, but in 2013 the city administration had to admit that in the long term, the financial costs of free public transport turned out to be too high.
Estonia, Tallinn
In Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, all residents registered in the city have been able to use buses and trains for free since 2013. The city administration took this step also because during the financial crisis many people could no longer afford to pay for tickets. However, the project had to be subsidized through additional tax revenues.
So far, the model has worked in the Estonian capital without major problems. But the issue of free public transport in the country remains controversial, says Estonian journalist Evelin Kaldoja: “People complain that there are fewer routes and connections for transfers to other lines and modes of transport.” This means that this free system is not very useful for people who use it for commuting to and from work, Kaldoja believes.
Journalist Kaldoja emphasizes that the project did not reduce the number of cars on the roads. “Despite free public transport, people who previously drove cars continue to do so,” Kaldoja states. If car traffic has decreased, it is primarily due to rising fuel prices. Buses and trains are now free not only in the capital but also in most regions of Estonia.
France, Dunkirk
In another European city, free public transport has helped reduce car traffic: the French city of Dunkirk on the Normandy coast. Here, free public transport has been available since 2018. The main goal of the project was to get people to switch to public transport.
The city seems to have achieved its goal. According to a study conducted a few months after the introduction of free public transport, the project led to a reduction in the number of trips by private cars: half of the respondents said they now use buses much more often than before. About five percent of respondents even sold their car or gave up buying a second car for other family members because of free bus travel.
Denmark, islands
On some Danish islands, free local transport was temporarily available, mainly for economic reasons. As Lina Holm-Jacobsen, coordinator of public relations and marketing at Visit Denmark, explained, this was part of the Danish government's support program for tourism development during the restrictive measures due to the coronavirus pandemic.
In the summers of 2020 and 2021, ferry travel to the Danish islands was free for passengers without a car. Additionally, during the summer season, public transport prices in Denmark were significantly reduced. Free ferry service is no longer available this year, but passengers can still benefit from reduced prices on local public transport.