Sharp increase in ticket-less bus riders since coronavirus

The number of bus riders who don’t check in suddenly increased in the past weeks. A study by public transit organization V-NL showed that one out of five passengers don’t settle payments as they ride the bus. Usually less than 5 percent of bus passengers rode without a ticket, NOS reported.

This is a worrying development, according to OV-NL chhairman Pedro Peters. He blamed the sudden increase on the coronavirus measures.

The check-in process has been changed to prevent infection. Passengers are now not allowed to get in or sit in the front of the bus, which means that bus drivers now have little sight on the check-in process.

Since June 1, over 7,000 fines have been issued for people who were identified not checking in upon riding the vehicle.