Vilnius transport administrator JUDU has presented a plan for 2023-2024. The proposal includes dividing Vilnius into zones to differentiate public transport fares.
JUDU has proposed dividing Vilnius into three zones: C (Centre), P (Outer City) and U (Suburbs). The Vilnius District will be included in the Suburbs zone, while most residential areas will be part of the Outer City zone.
“The central part of the city carries the highest number of passengers. It’s more convenient and cheaper to organise transport services in the centre than in the peripheral part of the city,” the website Made in Vilnius quoted Loreta Levulyte-Staskeviciene, head of Public Transport Organisation at JUDU, as saying.
According to JUDU, the zoning proposal could improve the quality of public transport in densely urbanised parts of the city. The price of the tickets would also depend on the travel distance.
“The pricing is likely to be based on the principle that journeys in the centre should be cheaper than those in the outer city or suburbs, as the cost of creating and maintaining infrastructure is higher in areas further away from the city centre,” Levulyte-Staskeviciene said.
According to her, however, the prices of the tickets would not change dramatically.
The JUDU plan also proposes creating 15 new routes and modifying 48 existing ones. It aims is to enable as much as 87% of Vilnius residents to use public transport.
The introduction of the zones would need to be approved by the Vilnius City Council. According to JUDU, zoning in Vilnius could be implemented until 2024. (LRT/Business World Magazine)
