Luxembourg becomes first country in the world to make public transport free

Luxembourg becomes the first country in the world to offer free public transport to everyone. In fact, it also becomes the first country in the world to offer free transport services to both residents and visitors.

The government has, much to the surprise of all, introduced the free public transport system as a measure to reduce dense car traffic. Reports state that the move will also affect approximately 40 per cent of households, and help them save around 100 Euros per year. Reportedly, this move comes in the wake of a wider plan aimed at reducing congestion.
The most used form of transport in the country is private cars which, during a 2018 survey, revealed that cars accounted for 71 per cent of leisure and 47 per cent of business travel.
Referring to this development, the Minister of Mobility and Public Works Francois Bausch describes it as the social icing on the cake of the global strategy for a multimodal revolution. The idea behind this move was also to reduce the gap between the rich and the poor as well as reduce congestion. Luxembourg has more cars per capita than any other country, and only one in five commuters use public transport.
As regarding the possibility of abuse of the said move, the Mobility Minister added that every passenger must be able to produce a valid passport or ID card, or else they might be banned from the public transport at any time.

With this move, it is expected that apart from encouraging people to shift to a more sustainable choice, it will also help transform the attitude of the entire population toward public transport.