Tbilisi residents are dissatisfied with increase of public transport fares

The Tbilisi Sakrebulo (City Council) has approved the system of subscription fares in public transport, but townspeople are outraged by the increase in travel costs.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on December 25, a protest action was held in Tbilisi, organized by supporters of the Labour Party of Georgia, who opposed the increase in the public transport fares and the introduction of a new payment system.

From February 1, the Mayoralty introduces three types of municipal transport fares – payment with a valid travel card on buses and in metro, a bank card, or an unlimited subscription. At the same time, the Mayoralty has established benefits for travelling in municipal transport for a number of population categories.

The residents of Tbilisi, interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent, who failed to get into any of the privileged categories, have sharply criticized the innovation, pointing out that authorities are making money at their expense.

According to Maya, a resident of Tbilisi, a refugee from Abkhazia, with the introduction of a new non-cash payment, she will not only pay more for travel, but will also have to buy a travel pass or open a bank account.

Eka, another Tbilisi resident, believes that it was decided to make preferential transport travels at the expense of the increased fares for other population categories.

Marina, a resident of Tbilisi, says that her low salary doesn't allow paying such an amount for public transport travels. "None of our family is entitled to travel benefits. Salaries are small; there's hardly enough money to live on. Everything has risen in price. How we'll live on – we're hardly surviving," she has complained.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on January 6, 2022 at 11:02 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.