“Strange Experiments with Mobility”: Latvian Bus Owners Proudly Left the Meeting with the Minister 0 13

Currently, carriers are deciding what their next steps will be.

“If carriers prioritize the interests of residents to ensure the provision of services under difficult conditions, then the minister and other policymakers continue to promote the rhetoric of so-called mobility experiments, which will undoubtedly worsen regional passenger transport and the situation of residents in the regions. While expenses in all sectors have been indexed after a sharp rise in prices in recent years, there has been no such price revision for passenger carriers with long-term contracts,” said Ivo Ošenieks, president of the Latvian Association of Passenger Carriers.

The association also points out that the information about the Ministry of Transport allegedly requesting additional funding for passenger transport is misleading. The approved budget for 2026 allocated fewer funds as a significant reduction in the route network in the regions was planned.

In essence, the requested funds are intended only for fulfilling trips under already concluded contracts, while additional funding is not allocated either for covering the losses of passenger transport from the previous year or for revising contractual prices, which forces them to operate below cost.

The association's president, Ivo Ošenieks, previously indicated that currently, quality and affordable regional public transport services are essentially provided at the expense of the carriers themselves. As a result, the critical situation in the industry is only exacerbated in the long term.

Ošenieks also expressed regret over the minister's statements that the industry allegedly did not propose solutions. According to him, industry representatives regularly informed the minister, the ministry, and the Road Transport Directorate in writing about the problems, their justification, calculations, and also presented their vision of possible further solutions.