The HSL Executive Board decided today to raise fares for 2026 by an average of 3.1 percent. The increase will apply across all ticket types and zones.
“Setting fares is always a balancing act. We want to keep the fare hikes moderate to ensure that public transport remains as accessible as possible. At the same time, HSL is guided by the capital region municipalities’ goal to maintain municipal funding at a certain level, all while facing rising costs. The moderate increases we are implementing mean that we will need to cover the rising infrastructure and operating costs through municipal funding as well as by savings in public transport and HSL’s operations,” says Mari Flink, Director of the Market Division.
We proposed a 4% fare increase. The decision to go with a lower 3.1% increase means that municipalities will contribute more funding. It also means that services will not face additional cuts beyond those that will need to be made anyway.
The Executive Board authorized the Executive Director to confirm the fares. Detailed fare information will be provided later.
Single tickets to be capped at the day ticket price
In the future, you will not pay more for single tickets than the cost of a day ticket per day, regardless of how many journeys you make.
“Due to the cost pressures, it is vital to make travel easier and attract new customers to public transport. That is why we will be introducing a daily fare cap for single tickets. We are now beginning preparations for this change,” says Flink.
The daily fare cap will be introduced in phases, with the schedule to be confirmed later. We plan to pilot the fare cap first for single tickets purchased with contactless payment.
Cost pressures will continue in the coming years
The cost of providing public transport is estimated to increase by up to 15 percent over the next four years. Both infrastructure and operating costs are on the rise, with infrastructure costs projected to increase by €10 million next year and operating costs by €12 million. To cover these increasing costs, we will need more income from both fare revenue and municipal subsidies. The target is for the municipal subsidy share to be no more than 55 percent in 2029.