Which European cities have the most expensive public transport?

Public transport is an important consideration when planning a city break, but now it’s been revealed that prices for getting around are at a new high in half of Europe’s capital cities.

New research from Greenpeace shows that public transport ticket prices have increased significantly in 14 European capitals over the past three years.

The body looked at the 27 EU nations, as well as the UK, Switzerland, and Norway and their respective capitals, and examined the availability and affordability of monthly and annual public transport tickets.

It also looked at the scope of long-term public transport passes – that includes

regional reach and what types of public transport are included in the cost – as well as inclusivity, or price reductions for vulnerable groups, and value-added tax (VAT) on public transport tickets.

Greenpeace wants national and local governments to introduce so-called affordable ‘climate tickets’ which would not only benefit public transport users, but also tackle emissions from road and air transport and the EU’s dependence on fossil fuels.

Here’s what the research showed.

Public transport prices are rising – but not everywhere

London, Amsterdam and Paris are some of the most popular cities among tourists on the continent, and are also notoriously pricey to live in. So, it’s little surprise that they have the most expensive public transport costs on a monthly basis.

London topped the list at €162 per month, followed by Amsterdam (€107 per month), and Paris (€77 per month).

Meanwhile, the sharpest increase for long-term ticket rates since 2023 was recorded in Cyprus’ capital of Nicosia, up 67%, followed by Amsterdam (+55%), Madrid (+50%) and Bratislava (+32%).

Berlin and Vienna saw prices shoot up by 29% and 26% respectively, while Copenhagen, Bucharest, Vilnius, Brussels and London saw prices increase by at least 10% over that period.

One significant issue that keeps public transport tickets in the EU particularly high is the fact that they’re taxed at an average of 11% VAT. Seven countries have also increased their VAT on public transport tickets since 2023.

It’s not all bad news though.

Prices for long-term public transport passes have actually fallen in four European capitals since 2023.

Dublin has done particularly well in this category, with a decrease of 42.5%.

Notoriously expensive Oslo’s prices are down 11.5%, while Bern’s decreased by 6.6%, and Budapest’s went down 5.8%.

Prices in 12 other capitals have remained at the same level since 2023.

While two more countries – Spain and Slovenia – introduced some form of a nationwide public transport ticket in the time since 2023, only eight out of 30 European countries currently offer free public transport or affordable universal long-term tickets.

In this category, Luxembourg, Malta, and Slovenia score best, while Finland, Greece and Norway rank worst for affordability and availability of national transport tickets, and also apply above-average VAT rates to domestic public transport.

At the more positive end of the scale, the cities which rank best in Europe based on the availability, affordability and inclusivity of long-term public transport tickets are Tallinn, Luxembourg City and Valletta in equal first place.

They’re followed by Prague in fourth, Rome in fifth and Athens in sixth spot. The top eight is rounded out by Sofia and Vienna, which take seventh and eighth place respectively.

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