Mannheim (dpa / lsw) – The Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Neckar (VRN) draws a mixed balance of the 9-euro ticket in local transport. “We hoped for more new customers with the 9-euro ticket campaign in order to achieve a certain degree of sustainability in public transport,” said Christian Specht, Mayor of the City of Mannheim and Chairman of the Rhein-Neckar Transport Association, on Wednesday.
According to VRN Managing Director Volkhard Malik, more passengers used public transport in the three summer months, and up to ten percent more on the S-Bahn; but the many occasional passengers in leisure traffic have not become any new customers. Malik: “The 9-euro ticket only kindled a temporary flash in the pan.” According to the VRN, a survey of passengers in Mannheim, Heidelberg and Ludwigshafen showed that 15 percent of them were former customers who had no longer used public transport for individual reasons, such as the pandemic. However, the proportion of new customers was less than one percent.
At the same time, the second largest transport association in the south-west advertised models from the Association of German Transport Companies at EUR 49 per month for an annual subscription and EUR 69 for a monthly pass.
The federal and state governments are currently struggling to find a successor to the 9-euro ticket. A ticket for 49 euros per month is a possible option. However, no decisions have been made yet.