Companies in public transport are starting up a public campaign so that more people will travel again by bus, train, tram and metro. The number of travelers is now about 50 to 60 percent of before the corona outbreak.
But the advice of the government is: work at home as much as possible to prevent the corona virus from spreading further. Does the campaign to attract more travelers conflict with this?
Chairman Pedro Peters of umbrella organization OV-NL does not think so. He emphasizes that since July 1, non-essential travel by public transport has also been allowed again. “The policy is no longer: stay at home. We can also eat out and go to the zoo. So public transport is allowed again.”
Strict conditions
However, there are strict conditions: wear a mouth mask and travel at quiet times as much as possible. Peters: “It’s a balance. We welcome travelers, but we ask them to travel outside of rush hour and to comply with the applicable rules.” Anyone who does not comply with the rules risks a fine of 90 euros.
Passenger organization Rover thinks the campaign is “very good”. A spokesperson says to have advised the public transport companies to campaign. “Of course we have to keep an eye out together. But a lot is possible by train or bus.”
Vulnerable groups
Interest association for the elderly ANBO calls the campaign confusing. A spokesperson refers to the advice of the RIVM to avoid public transport for people in risk groups. People over 70 fall into that group. “There are more than 3 million people over 65 in the Netherlands, a large proportion of them are over 70 and they are advised to avoid public transport. This is not a consistent policy.”
Many elderly people avoid the train and bus themselves. A recent poll by ANBO among 1700 seniors shows that 61 percent do not yet travel by public transport because of corona.
RIVM does not respond substantively to the campaign of public transport companies, but does confirm that high-risk groups are still advised to avoid public transport.
Number of travelers
Figures from Translink, the company that keeps track of how many travelers check in with an OV chip card every day, show that the number of boarders in the month of August was 50 to 60 percent, with peaks at 70 percent. “We see that the number of travelers is increasing when you look at all public transport card transactions. The individual tickets do not count,” said Gerbrandt Corbee of Translink.
The number of travelers checking in with an OV chip card. Percentage in relation to the number of travelers last year:
–
