The President of the Latvian Association of Passenger Carriers Ivo Ošenieks expressed concern on TV24 about the possible bankruptcy of public transport companies providing bus services in the regions of Latvia. In turn, the parliamentary secretary of the Ministry of Transport (MT) Girts Dubkevich ("Progressives") stated that no one has declared bankruptcy yet and there is "an element of blackmail" in this situation, however, the ministry is seeking solutions and is ready for compromise, reports nra.lv.
"The situation is quite bad if funds are not found and long-term contracts are not revised. The first protest took place in August in front of the Cabinet of Ministers, where carriers warned for the first time that costs are rising exponentially, and we would not like to reach a point where the current carriers are forced to go bankrupt. This is a real threat if the problem continues to be postponed and not resolved," noted Ivo Ošenieks.
According to Dubkevich, no one has officially declared bankruptcy, and he sees "some element of blackmail" in what is happening, as there are existing contracts, the ministry has already communicated with Mr. Ošenieks, and the situation is individual in each contract.
"If we are talking about an overall increase of 10% — that’s about 15 million euros, we cannot speak of a uniform, linear increase, because in each lot there are different buses, different numbers of passengers, different operational and depreciation costs, as well as purchase costs. Here, the Road Transport Administration is negotiating with each carrier separately, and it is clear that solutions are being sought and are already being found," explained the parliamentary secretary of the Ministry of Transport.
He added that the situation is complicated, and the ministry is aware of this, but if a tender has been held and prices have been set in contracts, "then it is worth looking at it from another angle: there are a number of enterprises that did not pass the selection, but are now coming and saying they are ready to provide this service."
"We are open to compromise, we are seeking it, and I think it must be there from both sides. In the ministry, we are ready for it," emphasized Dubkevich.
As previously reported by nra.lv, nine out of eleven active carriers in Latvia held a symbolic protest action "One Hour Without Public Transport" on September 16, during which 165 regional bus trips were canceled or delayed, causing inconvenience to about five thousand passengers.
Through their action, the companies aimed to have the state meet the demand for a 10% increase in the current transportation budget beyond the cost indexation provided for in the contracts. These contracts were concluded with companies that won tenders for the right to service certain regional routes (lots).
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