Subsidies and incentives for public transportation have long been seen as an integral part of encouraging public transportation ridership. A recent study conducted in the United States found that metro areas that received more government subsidies per capita were more likely to run with more passengers on board, rather than running routes with just a few heavily subsidized riders per vehicle. This finding was important as it was an alternative to the widely held belief that subsidies only influenced ridership in very particular groups and led to inefficiencies in the system.
These findings are encouraging but public transport is operating within a paradox. While the COVID-19 pandemic and cost of living crisis have proven the importance of public transport as a key element of a holistic mobility system, its financing has been under considerable stress over the past decade due to budgetary constraints. Microincentives could offer an alternative to the traditional structure of large-scale government public transport subsidies, easing financial limitations while simultaneously encouraging modal shifts.
MORE INFO: EIT Urban Mobility
IMAGES FROM: EIT Urban Mobility
