#Freetransit leads to more riders, more buses

Photo credit: BeeFortyTwo (cc)

Green Blog: ""The result is incredible," said Niklas Sirén, Vice Chairman of the municipal executive board in Kiruna. "We did not dare set a figure as a goal. There is a very strong car culture, it is sparsely populated here and we figured Kiruna residents are deeply rooted in their driving. We were pleasantly surprised. More people are choosing to leave their cars more often."

Niklas Sirén and his local Left Party was behind the suggestion to introduce free public transportation in 2011 on a trial basis. Back then, in 2010, only 120 000 trips were made. But since free public transit was introduced, travel has tripled in Kiruna and the experiment has now become permanent. Last year more than 387 000 trips were made in Kiruna.

"This has broken a downward spiral for public transport," Sirén said to ETC. "Previously, there would mostly be only empty buses. Now comes the expectation of more rides and lines. The next step is to expand public transport.""

20 towns in France have #freetransit, and plan to keep it.

Les opposants à la gratuité: "La gratuité des transports en commun en milieu urbain est un phénomène qui, tout en restant encore marginal, tend à se développer sur la période récente. Aujourd’hui, on compte en France une vingtaine de villes ou d’agglomérations qui ont instauré la gratuité totale des transports en commun. Bien mieux, certaines villes où la gratuité existe depuis plus de 20 ans n’ont pas l’intention de changer de modèle. Par ailleurs, lors des dernières élections municipales de 2014 de nombreux candidats, de droite comme de gauche, ont proposé d’instaurer la gratuité des transports en commun."

Towns in Poland with full or partial #freetransit

Free Public Transport (Polish/English)

May 1st, Swidnica joins the growing list of towns in Poland with free public transport

ws-24.pl - Free public transport in Swidnica! : "From May 1 Swidnica residents will enjoy free public transport. It is a privilege for those who are in town and checked in for those who pay their taxes in Swidnica. only document which will allow for the free ride is an identity card or identity card for students. "