This report explores how fare policies can make public transport more affordable, improving access to opportunities and increasing ridership. Fares are an important source for funding for operations, but revenues have been declining over time due to a combination of factors, such as increasing private car use and the inability of public transport networks to keep pace with changing travel needs. This report explores how fare structures can influence public transport use and identifies principles for fare-setting that can align with the wider goals for public transport. Public transport authorities need to consider affordability, transparency, inclusiveness, and flexibility when developing fare policies and selecting fare technologies. This report presents several case studies that illustrate these principles. It discusses the distributive effects of different fare policies and ticketing technologies. By identifying what can and cannot be achieved through fare policies alone, this study supports decision makers in developing and implementing more effective and fair fare policies.
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- Number of Pages
- 75
- Pages
- 75
- Published in
- France
Table of Contents
- Acknowledgements 5
- Figures 8
- Tables 9
- Executive summary 10
- What we did 10
- What we found 10
- What we recommend 11
- Fairer and more efficient fare systems 13
- Fare structures and fare policy principles 15
- Fare structures and usage incentives 15
- Fare structures supporting frequent use 16
- Fares structures supporting occasional use 17
- Balancing the needs of frequent and occasional users 18
- Principles for fare-setting 19
- Transparency 20
- Inclusiveness 21
- Flexibility and integration 22
- Affordability 23
- Fare policies in practice 26
- Stockholm: Time-based flat fare 27
- Fare payment and ticketing technology 29
- Who benefits? 30
- Bogotá: Income-targeted fare subsidy 32
- Fare payment and ticketing technology 33
- Who benefits? 34
- Los Angeles: Fare capping and low-income subsidy 39
- Fare payment and ticketing technology 40
- Who benefits? 42
- Jakarta: Integrated fares and fare capping 45
- Fare payment and ticketing technology 46
- Who benefits? 48
- Sustainable accessibility: Supplementary objectives of mode shift and climate action 49
- AustriaKlimaTicket 51
- SeoulClimate Card 51
- Fare system: 51
- Integrated multimodal public transport 51
- Integrated bikeshare 51
- Unlimited trips 51
- Unlimited transfers 51
- Payment options: 51
- Monthly 51
- Yearly 51
- Ticketing system: 51
- Open payment 51
- Close payment 51
- Account based ticketing 51
- Ticketing format: 51
- Stored value card (prepaid) 51
- Digital ticket (mobile ticket) 51
- Fare validation: 51
- No required validation 51
- Check in and check out 51
- Austria KlimaTicket 51
- Seoul Climate Card 57
- Discussion and conclusions 61
- Implementing fare policies 63
- References 65
- Annex A – Experts Interviewed 74
