The Ministry of Transport and Communications made a decision to amend the Decree on Penalty Fares in Public Transport in the HSL area on Wednesday 29 November. According to an estimate by the Ministry, an increase in the penalty fare to EUR 100 is proportionate to the rise in ticket prices.
“This is indeed a welcomed decision. HSL loses up to EUR 40 million in ticket revenue every year due to fare evasion, and we want to do everything in our power to tackle this issue,” says Mika Nykänen, the Executive Director of HSL.
The penalty fare on public transport in the HSL area has been EUR 80 since 2007. However, since then, the general cost and wage level has increased significantly, which in turn has decreased the actual size of the penalty fare. As a result, the penalty fare no longer has the same effect as it did before. In 2007, the price of the lowest single ticket for adults on public transport in the Helsinki region was EUR 2.20. In 2023, the price of the above-mentioned ticket is EUR 3.10. In 2024, the ticket will cost EUR 2.95.
Compared to the other Nordic countries, where penalty fares have been over EUR 100 for a long time, the penalty fare has been relatively small in size in the HSL area.
An increasing number of HSL bus services are services where passengers do not need to show their ticket to the driver as they board the vehicle. On the one hand, this has improved traffic flow and the level of service. On the other hand, it has also made fare evasion more prevalent. The purpose of the increase in the penalty fare is to decrease the number of passengers travelling without a valid ticket.
Ticket inspections carried out by HSL are based on the Decree on Penalty Fares in Public Transport.