Latvia may see up to 10% rise in regional public transport fares in 2027
Latvia's Public Transport Council has backed regular fare reviews, allowing for a fare increase of up to 10% in 2027. The Transport Ministry is also proposing other measures to cover rising costs without extra state budget funding.
According to an informational report from the Transport Ministry submitted for approval on the Legal Acts Portal, the Public Transport Council has endorsed regular reviews of regional public transport fares, with a potential increase of up to 10% in 2027. The Road Transport Administration says the council will make the final decision after weighing several scenarios depending on available funding. Any change would apply to both buses and trains, since they share a unified fare.
Possible compensatory measures
The ministry notes that if the budget cannot accommodate annual indexation of contracts, other solutions must be found. One option is raising fares — assuming passenger numbers stay stable, a 10% increase in 2027 could generate about €3.25 million in additional annual revenue. By comparison, the 6.8% fare increase in 2026 versus 2025 is projected to bring in roughly €3 million more.
Another option is reducing state support for people with fare discounts by introducing a co-payment of around 20% of the full ticket price. Currently about €19 million a year is spent on such support, and a co-payment could yield up to €4.94 million annually — though this requires coordination with the Welfare Ministry and legal amendments, so it is not expected in the short term.
Route network and bus stations
Fully offsetting indexation costs would require cutting the route network by at least 11 million kilometers from the current 65.7 million, but the ministry stresses this would critically harm residents' mobility, so the priority is to maintain the network at least at 2026 levels. Instead, regular demand monitoring is planned, along with a review of underused bus stations — keeping stations mainly in cities with high passenger traffic, which could save up to €3 million a year.
Digitalization
A fourth approach is digitalization — centralized ticket sales systems, passenger counters on vehicles, and a unified regional ticketing system. Combined, these measures could bring up to €8.5 million a year in the medium term, though the ministry stresses these are indicative estimates.
On September 16, eight carriers organized by the Latvian Passenger Carriers Association held a protest during which about 3,250 regional routes were not serviced, demanding a solution for contract indexation and compensation for rising fuel costs.
