By reducing train season ticket prices by 50% for three months, the goal is to increase the number of 30-day passes by 100,000 to 200,000, Transport Minister Atis Švinka (P) said on Wednesday in an interview with the Latvian Television programme Rīta panorāma.
He noted that Latvia has a well-developed railway network and the number of passengers transported per capita is 11.4, while, for example, in Lithuania this indicator is 2.1. “The train is one of the elements through which we can proportionally help a large number of residents in this price crisis,” Švinka said.
The minister stated that currently the number of 30-day train passes per month is approximately 700,000, and the goal is to increase this number by 100,000 to 200,000, thus reaching 800,000 to 900,000 passes.
Švinka announced on Tuesday, the 7th of April, that in response to rising fuel prices he will propose reducing train season ticket prices by 50% for three months. The proposal will be submitted for consideration at the government coalition cooperation meeting and at the next Cabinet meeting.
It has also been reported that in 2025,
Pasažieru vilciens transported a total of 21.333 million passengers, which is 9.7% more than the previous year.
This year, on the 1st of April, the Law on Limiting Fuel Price Increases came into force, providing temporary measures to mitigate the impact of rising fuel prices on the economy and the population. However, fuel traders told the LETA news agency that the reduction in excise duty on diesel fuel will be reflected with some delay, as the new rate applies to fuel released from excise warehouses to filling stations starting from the 1st of April.
The law provides for a temporary reduction in excise duty on diesel fuel — from 467 euros to 396 euros per 1,000 litres. For marked diesel fuel used in agriculture, the excise duty rate is set at 21 euros per 1,000 litres. The reduced rates will apply from the 1st of April to the 30th of June.
At the same time, despite the reduction in diesel excise duty that came into force on the 1st of April, average diesel prices at Latvia’s largest fuel stations have remained almost unchanged, while petrol prices continue to rise.
At SIA Neste Latvija fuel stations, the price of diesel on the 30th of March was 2.117 euros per litre, while on Wednesday it is 2.127 euros per litre. Meanwhile, at fuel retailer SIA Circle K Latvia stations, the average diesel price on the 30th of March was 2.134 euros per litre, and it is now 2.144 euros per litre.
At the same time, prices of 95-octane petrol continue to increase. At Circle K Latvia stations, the price has risen from 1.764 euros per litre on the 30th of March to 1.854 euros per litre, while at Neste Latvija stations it has increased from 1.747 euros per litre on the 30th of march to 1.837 euros per litre on Tuesday.
Read also: Fuel retailers versus the Latvian government: dispute over windfall tax intensifies