On Wednesday, Munich Transport and Tariff Association (MVV) CEO Bernd Rosenbusch told BR that there could be a massive increase in ticket prices. Rosenbusch did not want to give an exact number, according to the media there could be price increases of up to 6.9%. Negotiations were still ongoing. According to Rosenbusch, the shareholders of the largest Bavarian transport association have different tariff adjustment models.
Not only Munich increases public transport fares
On Friday, the MVV will discuss this in a non-public meeting. According to Rosenbusch, ideas about the necessary tariff adjustment differ markedly between the representatives of the state capital Munich, the Free State of Bavaria and the district administrators of the eight MVV districts. Monaco is not alone in the possible increase in fares.
Bus and train: from January also more expensive in Nuremberg and Neu-Ulm
In many associations, the annual rate adjustment takes place at the time change at the end of the year. The decisions of the individual transport associations in Bavaria are currently underway. In the large Nuremberg transport association (VGN), tariffs will increase by an average of 3.02% starting from January 1, 2023. This was decided by the shareholders’ meeting and the basic contracts committee of the VGN on July 28, 2022. In the VGN, about half of public transport costs are currently covered by ticket sales, the rest is paid by the public sector.
First Corona, now fuel and electricity prices are exploding
VGN CEO Anja Steidl explained: “The financial situation of the approximately 135 transport companies in the VGN is more than tense. After the number of passengers decreasing due to the pandemic, the next financial challenge is around the corner with the explosion of energy and fuel prices “.
The situation is similar in Neu-Ulm: in the Donau-Iller-Nahverkehrsverbund (DING) huge increases in energy prices are having an impact – and wage increases, the new CEO of the transport association admitted a week ago. Bastian Goßner: “Unfortunately it is not possible for us to keep prices stable in this context,” said Gossner. From 1 October, prices in Neu-Ulm in Bavaria will increase by an average of 7.2%.
Würzburg and Regensburg are still waiting
The transport associations of Würzburg and Regensburg, on the other hand, are still reluctant to adjust prices. The managing director of Regensburger Verkehrsverbund GmbH (RVV) Kai Müller-Eberstein, when asked by BR24 whether and to what extent the prices would be adjusted, “has not yet been decided”.
RVV is also suffering from huge increases in fuel and electricity prices. These would currently be financed by customers, i.e. mainly by the city and district of Regensburg. At the request of BR24, Würzburg Supply and Transport GmbH (WVV) writes that no further tariff increases are planned in the VVM (Mainfranken Transport Association) by the end of the year. Prices had already risen by 2.9 percent on 1 August.
The offer of the 9 euro ticket was very well received, according to the WVV, “especially on weekends, the means of transport to the tourist hotspots were very busy”. It is still unclear in Würzburg what the cash position will look like after the 9 euro ticket. Other transport associations, on the other hand, report considerable losses, which the Confederation should compensate for.
Association: “Almost impossible to keep current prices”
State director Burkhard Hüttl of the Association of German Transport Enterprises (VDV) in Berlin firmly expects that all other municipal transport companies in Bavaria will also raise their tariffs: “It is almost impossible to keep the price at its current level. wage increases for employees cost more to transport, regardless of whether it is diesel on the bus or electricity on the train. ”
Hüttl refers to the plight of all transport companies: “As an energy-intensive company, companies are currently severely affected by the high costs of electricity and diesel. Personnel costs have also increased significantly.” As in other industries, the additional costs would have to be passed on to customers to cover the costs, says Hüttl.
The federal states are currently negotiating with the federal ministry of transport to offset the current additional costs of 1.65 billion euros. So far, the Federal Ministry of Transport has refused the full compensation. In the event of failure to reach an agreement quickly, the government executive fears that the offer may thin out.
After the 9 euro ticket: (yet) no real passage to public transport
There are doubts that buses and trains will continue to be heavily used after the 9 euro ticket. Two weeks ago, the Augsburger Verkehrsverbund (AVV) confirmed to BR that the ticket had brought more passengers and therefore more traffic, especially in the leisure sector. The ticket has not involved, or at least not yet, a real shift towards public transport.
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