Free public transport for young children in Amsterdam & The Hague starting this summer

Children in Amsterdam from the ages of 4 to 11 can travel on public transport for free as part of a trial program beginning this summer, the city this week. Additionally, children in the same age group will be able to use public transport services at no charge in The Hague as part of a similar program.

In Amsterdam, children will be able to use any bus, tram or subway operated by the GVB for free starting July 20. They will not pay a fare between the hours of 9 a.m. and 9 p.m. to ensure that the rush hours were not too overcrowded, according to the city. They also must be accompanied by an adult.

This will be allowed only after applying for the free transit program, with the application period starting July 1. Once granted, the free travel approval can be added to the child's personal OV-Chipkaart, the contactless payment card for the national public transportation system.

The offer lasts until January 5, corresponding to the end of the winter school holiday. In the regions of Noord-Holland Noord and Haarlem/IJmond, children up to 12 can also travel by bus for free for the year. They can also use the bus and tram for free in Utrecht this year, and Rotterdam has also been testing its own program for the same age group.

The Hague decided to provide free public transport for the 4 to 11 age group to ensure that their parents take the bus or tram more often when they go out. The city also wants to encourage children to use public transport more often as they get older.

The trial program in The Hague will start at some point in the third quarter during the summertime, and will run until the end of next year. If it is successful, the program could become permanent from 2026. The city already reimburses parents who pay the upfront cost when applying for a personal OV-Chipkaart for their children.

Children up to 11 could also travel on public transport for free for several months last year in Amsterdam. The deal lasted until November in that case. “Almost 17,000 children used the offer last year, which is a quarter of the children in Amsterdam,” said Melanie van der Horst, the city's alderman for traffic policy. A budget of a million euros was made available for the free travel.

Children in Amsterdam completed almost a million public transport trips last year, mainly during rush hour. “The free travel arrangement is especially meant to give children the chance to visit friends or family, visit a park or a swimming pool, or visit a museum or event during the school holidays or the weekend.”

The times were expanded to 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. to stimulate these types of visits and spread travel outside of rush hour periods.