Will public transport stay as we currently know it? According to Dennis Huisman, professor of Public Transport Optimization at Erasmus University, a lot will certainly change. In any case, train use has changed after the corona epidemic. He sees, for example, that people who use public transport for recreational purposes have largely returned. But the number of commuters has not returned to its original state. People no longer have to be physically present at work every day, which has a permanent effect on how public transport is currently used.
Salaries are also too low and the workload for staff is too high. Public transport did not have these problems before the corona epidemic. Transporters in the Netherlands are therefore having a hard time. Before the corona epidemic, millions were invested to permanently improve the infrastructure. With crowded metro and trains, it was often difficult to find a seat.
The consequences of corona on public transport
Due to the corona virus, everything changed. Lots of people worked from home for several days. Currently, the effects of the pandemic can still be felt. people travel to work less and the number of people who use public transport on a daily basis has decreased. Nevertheless, there is still being invested in the quality of new trams and buses with the hope that people will return to public transport. But not everyone is as optimistic. The Rotterdam carrier RET states that if that is without support, there is a chance their public transport decreases with 30 percent.
Higher costs
The income for public transport is lower, while the costs are just as high as before the corona pandemic. The providers of public transport still want to offer the same product as they did before for the same price. Huisman: “Public transport companies hardly make a profit, which is currently turning into a loss due to the lower income. This is not feasible in the long term.”
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How can this be solved? In this article Huisman discusses two options, increasing the government subsidy or cutting the public transport supply.