Free travel in public transport – such a decision was made by the Luxembourg authorities three years ago, and it has shown its effectiveness.
The result was more than positive. Residents of the world’s first country with free public transport are very happy – now they “travel easily and with the benefit of the environment.” Of course, it cannot be argued that the passage is completely free, it is financed by taxes. Luxembourg Minister of Transport François Bausch explains:
“These are significant costs, but you should know that they are actually taxed. They are paid by all taxpayers. There is great justice in this, because it is obvious that those who pay little in taxes pay nothing or very little in this system, it really free.And those who pay more taxes obviously contribute a little more.When we made all public transport free, it was like a “icing on the cake”: it prompted society to dialogue about how to rethink our way of life, ways movement and take a closer look at the essence of our experiment.
Car culture is still quite common, but some users of the free transportation system are already calling it a “fundamental right”:
“It allows all the inhabitants of the borderlands, especially Belgium, Germany and France, to travel easily. It’s also a good form of freedom. We don’t have that in France. And here there are fewer controllers, less hassle.”
Another man is very pleased that the system has a positive impact on the environment:
“Because it’s free, it’s easier to make a quick decision between public transport and a private car. This means that the innovation is very positive for the environment and practical.”
The Estonian capital and Luxembourg became the first cities in Europe to completely abolish public transport fares: in Estonia – at the city level, and in Luxembourg – at the country level. More than 50 cities and towns in Europe have introduced free public transport, motivated by concern for the state of the climate and the desire for greater social equality. The idea is extremely simple: citizens get unlimited free access to public transport for daily commuting. Wojciech Keblowski, a researcher at the Free University of Brussels, compares the idea to visiting public parks:
“No one is asking us to pay for every minute or every hour spent in the park. So why not consider public transport as part of the same system, part of this social norm?”
Yet even proponents of the experiment warn that free public transport is not a panacea for sustainable public mobility. Baush says:
“If you don’t have a global vision, if you don’t have a modern strategy, if you don’t have an investment program that should improve the system of transfers, improve the quality of public transport, then the introduction of free public transport in itself is not a good idea.”
For now, the experiment continues. It is a pity that Greece does not take part in it …
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