Asunción’s internal buses will charge G. 2,800 to each passenger from Saturday until a state subsidy is provided. These carriers do not receive assistance from the State because they do not put their units in condition.
From the Municipality of Asunción they reported that from tomorrow the internal bus ticket will go up G. 500, with which the price will climb to G. 2,800. The lines that will have the raise are: 1, 6, 9, 13-1, 13-2, 16-2, 37 B, 37 C.
In return, the commitment to renew 10% per year of the bus fleet and the normalization of hourly frequencies to the transport sector will be required, with which the service to users will be guaranteed.
This measure will be extended until the companies enter the government subsidy system. So far, the project that includes the Asunción companies in the subsidy regime has not prospered, which instead benefits the buses of the Metropolitan area.
For this reason, the Municipal Administration urges the Central Government to specify said reincorporation through its Vice Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Finance.
The main technical justifications for this measure are:
- The effect of the pandemic, since its beginning in March 2020, has reduced up to 80% of the number of passengers using the public transport service. Later it went to 60%, then to 50% and today there is still a decrease of 40%.
- There were five fuel price increases in this time period.
- The implementation and use of the collection, through the Electronic Ticketing System, implies a cost of around Gs. 200 for each passage charged by magnetic card.
- The lack of updating the amount of the ticket in Asunción dates from the beginning of the ticket subsidy, that is, from the year 2013.
It should be remembered that on September 6 of last year, carriers adjusted the ticket rate by charging G. 3,300 and not G. 2,300, which caused a large number of complaints and complaints by users. Subsequently, the municipality reached an agreement with the permit holders to return the rate to its original price.
At the time, the Vice Ministry of Transport explained that in order to grant a state subsidy to municipal units, the technical rate must first be determined and then they must become part of the institution, or in return the Municipality must take charge of granting the respective subsidy.
In the event that municipal buses enter the Vice Ministry of Transportation, carriers must adhere to the same requirements as other permit holders, such as putting their buses in condition, complying with the fees, having IPS coverage, among others. obligations.
