Public transport fares to rise by 11.7% next year, slightly more than expected

Fares for the metro, bus, and tram will increase by around 11.7 percent next year, according to DOVA, an organization of governments that tender public transport. The increase is slightly higher than DOVA’s previous estimation of 11.3 percent, NU.nl reports.

DOVA, which includes the provinces and large cities like Amsterdam and Rotterdam, calculates every year how much the costs of public transport companies have increased. These increases were fairly limited in the past years, but this year, expenses skyrocketed due to high energy prices and wage increases. Public transport companies aren’t obliged to follow DOVA’s recommended price increase, but they typically do.

The increases apply to the regional public transport companies like Arriva, Connexxion, and Kreolis, as well as urban transport in the four big cities - RET in Rotterdam, HTM in The Hague, GVB in Amsterdam, and U-OV in Utrecht. It will be the second significant increase in public transport fares in a row. At the beginning of this year, fares became 7 percent more expensive.

Travelers’ organization Rover called the price increases “shocking,” according to the newspaper. “DOVA’s calculation method is accurate, so you can’t do much about that,” director Freek Bos said. “But as a government, you should ensure fuller buses and trams. Then, you can spread the increased costs over more travelers, and the fares will increase less.”

“There are now fewer buses than before the coronavirus, while the prices have gone up,” Bos continued. “That is why you should do something fiscally. Excise duties have gone down for motorists, but public transport users have not received such a reduction. Moreover, public transport is better for the climate.”

The provinces would like the national government to help cover public transport companies’ increased costs, their advocate, the Interprovincial Consultation (IPO), told the newspaper. Earlier this year, parliament adopted a motion urging the government to prevent public transport from declining further. The four large cities also support this call.