The 50% reduction in second-class fares on trains operating under public-service contracts will continue in November and may also continue in December. Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) announced this on Wednesday following a working meeting with representatives of the Ministry of Transport, where they discussed discounted rail fares.
“The government is prepared to continue this €6 million subsidy in November and December this year. We will see what happens next year, but we have the state budget on the table,” Fico said. He added that he believed the 2027 budget would be in good shape and that the government would be able to continue the subsidy program in 2027 if necessary.
According to the prime minister, the government’s decision to temporarily halve rail fares from October 1 is proving worthwhile, as demonstrated by increased passenger numbers since the measure was introduced. For example, the number of paying passengers on October 5 rose by almost 25% year-on-year to 52,315. “There were also days, for example October 3 and 4, when the increase in passenger numbers was almost 35% to 38%,” Fico said.
The 50% fare discount will also apply to regional bus services and public transport in regional capitals. The state’s costs for supporting the measure are almost €13 million. Fico said six regions plan to introduce reduced fares on regional buses from October 12, while the Trnava and Trenčín regions introduced the measure as early as October 1.
“They do not have hard data yet, but I can say that, based on their impressions, they are seeing an increase in passengers on regional buses. As soon as we have hard data, we will present it to the government and inform the public,” Fico said. He noted that the monitoring system is different from the one used by Slovak Rail.
Regional capitals are to reduce public transport fares from October 12. According to Fico, this may not apply to Trnava because it has an integrated transport system. “But if it turns out that the impact is similar to that on trains, we will not oppose finding funding for this subsidy mechanism as well, which concerns the higher territorial units—that is, regional buses—and the eight regional capitals and their public transport systems. Under these circumstances, I want to state that the government made a rational decision,” he added.
Opposition MP Ján Hargaš (Progressive Slovakia) also commented on the discounted train fares. He argued that certain workers, such as electricians, construction workers, and carpenters, cannot simply switch to trains. “Are they also supposed to get on trains with all the equipment they need for their work?” he asked. He also pointed out that people in places such as Námestovo, Stropkov, and Svidník cannot use trains because there are no rail services there.
“Instead of the systemic solution we have been proposing since the spring—namely, increasing the taxation of Slovnaft and using the proceeds for fuel vouchers for the most vulnerable households and targeted subsidies for the hardest-hit sectors—Fico is offering nothing but expensive populism. Clearly, he cares more about Slovnaft than about the people of Slovakia,” Hargaš concluded.
Source: TASR
