Early morning and evening bus entry through the front door will become permanent starting in November
Tartu City Government Press Release
/ Launched in August, the front door bus entry campaign – ‘From 19.00 in the evening to 07.00 in the morning!’ – will continue after the completion of the pilot project. The collected data reveals that the number of registered trips during the pilot project increased by a quarter compared to a year ago.
‘The pilot project has confirmed that the requirement to enter through the front door facilitates the registration of rides. In September and October, the registration of rides during the pilot project increased by 23% and 25%, respectively, compared to 2023. Particularly noticeable is the increase in the evening hours, where the number of registrations was at times almost 50% higher than last fall. Although the full impact on ticket sales is not yet clear due to period tickets, hourly ticket sales have increased by nearly 15%. This additional revenue is essential for the development of public transport,’ explained Deputy Mayor Raimond Tamm.
At the beginning of September, nearly 1,000 bus passengers responded to the pilot project feedback survey on Tartu’s website, sharing their experiences and suggestions on how to make it more convenient for users to enter the bus via the front door. Since the feedback pointed out that entering through the front door still creates confusion and feels inconvenient, the city is introducing clearer markings and directing bus drivers to behave more uniformly to reduce possible misunderstandings.
The city government started a pilot project for bus entry through the front door in the summer because, according to data analysis, Tartu buses have a significant number of passengers riding without tickets, especially in the evening hours. Each year, Tartu loses an estimated EUR 500,000 due to passengers without tickets, which could be used to further develop bus service.
After the completion of the pilot project, it will become mandatory, starting in November, to enter the city bus from 19.00 to 07.00 through the front door and exit from the rear doors. When entering through the front door, the passenger must register at the first detector. Passengers using a wheelchair can enter the bus at any time through the rear doors, and passengers using assistive devices (e.g. wheelchair, rollator) can signal their desire to enter via the button by the middle door.
Last changed 29.10.2024