Spaniards travel more by train thanks to free passes, with Cercanías and Media Distancia adding 3 and nearly a million passengers respectively compared to pre-pandemic numbers
The government’s most important measure to reduce workers’ spending with the rise in prices due to the crisis in Ukraine was the reduction of public transport, which started last April and will continue through 2023. This saving for Added users has led many to join this form of mobility, which registered nearly 424 million users across Spain in November, almost 650,000 more people than in the same month of 2019, before the pandemic broke out, and 76 million more (18%) than in November 2021, according to data from INE.
As for urban public transport, which breaks down the metro and the bus, the growth in the use of the metro is striking in the cities that have this service, with 109.2 million passengers in Spain in November alone, compared to 88.9 million in the same month of 2021, but even higher than the 104.3 million in the same month of 2019.
For its part, the bus attracted 146.9 million passengers in November, 15% more than the same month of 2021, but still below 2019 figures when 151.7 million people traveled by bus.
The autonomous communities are the ones who have the powers of the metro and city buses, but with the decision of the central government to support with 30% of the costs those who increase the subsidy of the tickets to 50%, it is has been possible to reduce prices and increase the number of travelers using public transport in all Spanish cities. Some, such as the Community of Madrid, have already announced that they will increase the subsidy to 60% from February.
But where the reduction in transport prices has been most apparent is on the Cercanías and Media Distancia trains, whose tickets are free for frequent passengers if a deposit is paid. In November, 48.2 million people traveled on Cercanías trains, almost three million more than those who used them in the same month of 2019, before the pandemic. The increase is also very noticeable in the Media Distancia (formerly known as Regionales) trains, which registered 3.7 million people compared to 2.9 million in 2019.
On the other hand, in long-distance trains, such as the AVE, the number of passengers has fallen, from 1.9 million in November 2019 in this high-speed service to the current 1.7 million. Air traffic has also decreased compared to pre-pandemic numbers. In 2019, 3.9 million Spaniards traveled through the country by plane, in November 2022 there were 3.2 million.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
