The government is studying put an end to free vouchers on trains of Middle Distance and Cercanías from 2025. The The Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Óscar Puente, has already publicly declared himself inclined to do soafter the Secretary General of Sustainable Mobility, Álvaro Fernández Heredia, conveyed it during a meeting at the National Federation of High Speed Recurring Traveler Associations of Spain. The problem now is to find an economical and sustainable alternative.
And this is what will be discussed at the next meeting – for which there is no fixed date – that this user federation will hold with Renfe and members of the Ministry of Transport. In this you will know the fine print of possible alternatives to finally be free and, more precisely, If there is an alternative designed with new prices.
“There, they will explain to us how they are going to manage this, particularly with regard to prices,” he tells the newspaper. Carlos Perfecto, spokesperson for the National Federation of High Speed Recurring Traveler Associations of Spainwho considers that “the price is a very thorny question”.
And that’s because the government is aware that restoring prices before September 1, 2022 – the month when bonuses on rail services come into force – is not the best option.
It should be remembered that the Government calculated that the savings linked to the free Cercanías and Media Distancia trains, as well as the 50% discounts on Avant and some AVE trains, reached 1,000 euros per family in the first four months of its implementation. Much greater savings if we take into account that the measure has been extended for an additional seven quarters.
But the option of maintaining free access is also not ideal. As Puente explained in an interview with Be on chainwas a temporary measure due to inflation in Spain and aimed to “relieve the family economy”. Just like the VAT reduction on food, eliminated since October 1st.
This is why the National Federation of High Speed Recurring Traveler Associations of Spain has informed the government that it is necessary an “economically acceptable price” because otherwise it would put an end to some of the advantages brought by this measure, such as the establishment of the population in cities which have suffered from depopulation.
Madrid Cercanías Lines.
In this sense, in March this the federation presented Renfe with a proposal for payment of workalthough they have not yet received a response. “It is a subscription with an affordable price that takes into account the user’s place of residence, but with the idea of helping those who have a greater distance to travel with greater premiums”, explains the spokesperson for the federation. SO, The ideal price should be between 150 and 250 euros.
Another aspect to take into account is the high number of breakdowns that occur on the conventional rail network, especially in Madrid. Under these circumstances, revising ticket prices may not be a very popular option.
Single subscription
The Ministry of Transport indicates to this newspaper that the end of this measure “is under study”, as the minister said, and that “We will see” the decisions that will be taken in this regard. But, for the moment, they did not wish to comment on possible alternatives.
The person who did it is the head of the transport portfolio. “We are considering a form of payment in arrears, depending on the number of uses you have made, the price will be cheaper. In other words, the recurring user will benefit from a much better price,” Puente argued.
The Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Óscar Puente.
Efe
The Federation of Recurring Travelers does not agree on this point, because it believes that the pricing model must be mixed and bringing together the aspects of utility and distance of users.
They also demand to improve internal mechanisms so that Renfe manages subscriptions with more flexibility, as is already the case in Germany and France. “In Germany, you can board any train without having to book tickets, which is unthinkable here,” explains Carlos Perfecto.
The option launched by Greenpeace through an investigation and which benefits from broad public support is also on the table.
The idea would be to create a single pass which would allow users to access all modes of public transport (buses, trains, trams, metros, bicycles, etc.) throughout the country, with an affordable flat rate. Something that for Puente would be “desirable” for 2026.
Impact of the measure
Since the rail transport bonus came into force, the use of trains has increased. The figures demonstrate it: in the second quarter of 2024, all services gained travelers (Middle distance 15% and Cercanías 3%). In interannual terms, Media Distancia grew by around 10% and Cercanías, by 5%, according to the latest data published by the National Competition Market Commission (CNMC).
Data supported by the latest report from the CNMC Household Panel corresponding to the last quarter of 2023, which reveals that 15.7% of Cercanías free pass users admit that they would not have traveled without the discount.
In addition to greater use of rail transport, there is another important effect: the train fixed the population in cities that were losing inhabitants to Madrid. “In Castile and León, the population remained the same or increased in all provincial capitals, except León,” explains Carlos Perfecto, who assures that it is because many Castilians-Leonese are returning home, because it is now more economical to go to Madrid to work.
And finally, we must not forget that the train is one of the most sustainable means of transport available and an alternative to the train or the plane.
