“It is difficult to present it to us, but it is not possible otherwise. The Chinese flu took over 40 million crowns in revenues from the transport company by October alone, “said Jiří Šolc (Mayors for the Liberec Region), Deputy Mayor for Technical Administration. “It simply came to our notice then. Part of the outage will be rehabilitated by the city, part by passengers. The city will pay 10 million more and passengers will become more expensive for a one-time fare by 4 crowns. In 2013, the fare went from 16 crowns to 20 crowns, since then it has remained unchanged, and from 2021 it would be 24 crowns. “
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According to him, the price does not apply to prepaid coupons, so-called flyers. “On the contrary, we have introduced another discounted coupon for parents on parental leave, who accompanies the pram with the child,” added Šolc. The matter has already been approved by the councilors.
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Šolc estimates that the increase in the price of a one-off fare could bring the transport company another ten to 12 million crowns in revenues. “If the number of passengers remains at the pre-Eid numbers,” the deputy warned. According to him, the question is whether there will be another wave of pandemics next year, and it is not so certain whether passengers will return to public transport.
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The transport company is facing a large drop in passengers. Mayor Jaroslav Zámečník (Mayors for the Liberec Region) added that while before the pandemic buses up to 530,000 passengers and trams another 270,000 ran weekly in Liberec, in times of emergency it is less than half. “We’re 330,000 out of 800,000,” he calculated. It is now run in Liberec, just like in the spring, according to holiday timetables.
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Last year, a transport company in the country’s fifth largest city carried 38.5 million passengers. Its turnover exceeded 555 million crowns, of which it received almost 143 million in sales. The chairman of the board of directors of the transport company, Michal Zděnek, has previously stated that they responded to the drop in revenues by investigating and restricting investments. For example, the reconstruction of the tram line in Jánská Street has been postponed, and less will be spent on repairs to bus garages.
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Liberec, which is its main shareholder, will also partially help the transport company cope with the slump. As already mentioned, politicians at the city council approved a contribution of ten million crowns. Last year, Liberec sent 275 million in subsidies to the transport company, for this year the representatives approved a contribution of 309 million. The Liberec transport company operates 49 lines and annually buses and trams travel over 3.9 million kilometers.
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Measurements, the results of which were published exactly a year ago, showed that the worst atmosphere is in Liberec on Šaldovo náměstí and its surroundings, ie in a place where long columns of cars form. The devices detected concentrations of oxides of sulfur, nitrogen and carbon, airborne dust, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, but also, for example, concentrations of selected heavy metals in the air and fluctuations in pollution during the day.
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Mayor Zámečník then, when balancing his annual work at the municipality, stated that one of his main goals is to get people from cars to public transport. “We are trying to get Liberec drivers to change to public transport. We are trying to make it more attractive, “he said.
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According to experts, the price is one of the key arguments according to which people decide whether to use public transport or not. Michal Lehečka from the Laboratory of Sustainable Urbanism from the AutoMat Association some time ago. The News said that the role is more important. He commented on the planned rise in prices in Prague, but his words are of general application. In addition, Prague plans to raise the price also due to a ‘covid’ drop in revenue.
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“If it is a jump, it may be negative for public transport as a result. Some people who cannot afford the fare may start to drive illegally. Others will calculate that it will be worthwhile for them to use a car for transport, “Lehečka explained. He added, “it may happen that the increase in prices will put low-income groups in a situation where they will not be able to afford it. It would be nice if they switched to bicycles, but it is more realistic that at today’s prices of petrol and diesel, they will rather use individual car transport. “
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In Liberec, public transport will increase in price by a fifth since the New Year.
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So what should cities like Prague or Liberec do? It is said that, for example, it pays to work with the prices of residential parking. If the zone for the first car were to be an annual public transport subscription and at the same time had the opportunity to use public transport all year round, then the effects of the increase in mobility on mobility could be eliminated at least a little. “In any case, it is probably necessary to carefully consider and calculate whether the increase in prices, even at the cost of a possible outflow of some passengers, will bring extra money so that public transport can develop and improve,” says Michal Lehečka. Only comfortable and modern public transport hopes to attract passengers back in the post-coronavirus era.
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