De Lijn will not index the SMS ticket and the ten-trip card until February 1, 2025. Flemish Mobility Minister Lydia Pieters (Open VLD) blocks the coalition partners’ request to increase tickets next year. “I agree with the increase in ticket prices in De Lijn.”
Prices remain at the level of April 2022, with an SMS ticket costing 2.5 euros and a ten-trip ticket costing 17 euros. The main reason is that the transportation landscape is undergoing a complete transformation. Instead of providing a dense network of buses, the government is focusing on basic routes, which are supplemented by local buses, taxis and shared mobility.
In addition, due to past crises, this is not the time to increase bus and tram fares. “We want to encourage more people to make sustainable choices more often and travel by public transport,” says Peters. In doing so, it counters criticism that with a €5,000 subsidy for new electric cars, it is only doing nothing for car users.
The bill is for De Lijn. It is estimated that the carrier will receive 24 million euros less. “We will include this during our budget discussions,” says spokesman De Lijn. “The fact that costs are indexed, not revenues, will inevitably have an impact.”
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