– This was as expected, says director of urban environment and development in Stavanger municipality, Leidulf Skjørestad. Municipal director for urban environment and development in Stavanger, Leidulf Skjørestad. Photo: Ole Andreas Bø / news In May, the bomb was dropped that Stavanger municipality would provide free public transport services to all residents of the municipality from 1 July. Both Rogaland County Council and Kolumbus, the company that operates public transport in Rogaland, were so caught off guard by the news that they did not want to give any answers to the media about the matter. In a recent memo, the county council and Kolumbus now explain what they think about the free bus proposal. And the problems are waiting, if we are to believe the note. Firstly: How are Stavanger people supposed to buy a ticket in practical terms, when it is free? “Send ticket” The solution Stavanger municipality will go for, according to Skjørestad, is something called “send ticket”. This solution works so that the municipality can issue tickets from a simple online solution. The customer must actively request a ticket in order to have it sent to them. The municipality will then be invoiced every month for issued tickets. The challenge with this ticket is that it can be forwarded. The municipality will therefore take a risk that a resident of Stavanger who does not need the ticket himself, may give the ticket to a resident of another municipality. The main points for Rogaland County Municipality It is positive that Stavanger Municipality wants to encourage more people to use the region’s public transport services. Fears that it will create inequalities and that there will be consequences for the region’s overall efforts to achieve the goal of zero growth. Free buses can trigger the need for more buses – this will create a financial burden. The county assumes that any increase in capacity is covered by Stavanger municipality. Reminder that Stavanger must bear all the risk for the measure. More companies will probably opt out of HjemJobbHjem because a major advantage of the scheme – i.e. cheap bus – is lost when the bus is free. What about the city bikes? They are currently included in the bus ticket. Should Stavanger people be able to use them as much as they want, completely free of charge? In that case, a few people can confiscate the bikes. A new, planned payment model will not be able to be introduced if Stavanger gets a free bus. The county announces ceiling increases and reductions in the route offer. Free bus for some will be experienced as very unfair for others. Worried about what happens when the scheme is discontinued and people again have to pay. It can scare people away from the bus. Points out that the research believes this will not work. The scheme will probably lead to a marked increase in inquiries to the customer senate. It could also pose challenges related to GDPR and privacy. Hurtigbåt challenge Furthermore, this solution will require Stavanger municipality to collect the mobile numbers of the residents who should be able to get a ticket. And there are not a few. Over 145,000 people live in Stavanger. “Demanding”, is the county council’s conclusion. – In addition, it will be difficult for those without a mobile phone to get their ticket financed by Stavanger municipality, writes the county council in the note. Another challenge is that the solution cannot be used on speedboats. It is still unclear how people who travel by fast boat in Stavanger will be able to get a free boat. Photo: Josef Benoni Ness Tveit / news – We are working to see what solutions exist there as well. It may be possible to achieve, but there will be some technical barriers, says Skjørestad. No idea how much it will cost Stavanger municipality has set aside NOK 200 million for the measure. The county council writes in its memo that they have no idea how much a free bus for everyone in Stavanger will actually cost. – As of now, there is no exact overview of the number of tickets and ticket types that are linked to residents of Stavanger municipality, they write. Skjørestad in Stavanger municipality will not comment on whether the 200 million might be too little, yet. – We will get back to that when we present this on Tuesday, says Skjørestad. County transport manager Stine Haave Åsland thinks it is positive that Stavanger municipality dares to invest, but therefore has some objections: Stine Haave Åsland is county transport manager in Rogaland. Photo: Pål Christensen / Stavanger Aftenblad – It has not been possible to carry out any thorough investigations in the short time available. We see a number of challenges, both in terms of practical implementation this summer and possible effects in a longer time perspective, she says. Has received positive feedback Group leader for the Labor Party in Stavanger, Dag Mossige, tells news that they have set a restriction that this will apply to passengers traveling within Nord-Jæren. Previously, the Labor Party has stated that the goal is for it to be free for Stavanger’s residents throughout Rogaland. So it doesn’t seem to work. A resident of Stavanger municipality will therefore not be able to commute by fast boat to Sauda or Tau. He has not read the document himself, but is not surprised that the county council believes the proposal poses a number of problems. Group leader for the Labor Party in Stavanger, Dag Mossige. Photo: Øystein Ellingsen / news – There is of course a challenge with such an innovative measure at such short notice. But I think much of the uncertainty can be answered. This will be clarified when we receive the case from the municipal director, says Mossige. He says he has received a lot of positive feedback on the initiative. – It is a redistributive measure. It is a financial calculation, and I am happy when I receive feedback that this will be able to help the private finances. There are still many unanswered questions, according to Mossige, and it is not yet clear where the restrictions will go. – We have to get the numerical basis on the table, he says. The matter will be presented to the municipal council in Stavanger on 19 June.
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Rogaland county council fears the proposal for a free bus will cost more than NOK 200 million – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
