2023-12-30 17:26:00
Passenger movement in São Paulo ANDRé RIBEIRO/THENEWS2/ESTADÃO CONTEÚDO-17.12.2023 The end of fare charging in urban public transport advanced in 2023 in the country as never before. Since January, 31 municipalities have adopted the full system, which covers zero fares for transport every day for the entire population. The year 2021 was the second in terms of the most adhesions: 15 cities. In total, the country currently has 94 municipalities with a full Free Pass. The data are from researcher Daniel Santini, from USP (University of São Paulo). See also São Paulo Zero fare starts today: find out how the free bus pass will work in São Paulo São Paulo São Caetano do Sul announces zero fare project for city buses São Paulo Ricardo Nunes rides the bus to launch the Zero Tariff program and hears passenger charges São Paulo is the state with the largest number of municipalities with zero fares: 29, followed by Minas Gerais (25), Paraná (11) and Rio de Janeiro (10). The state of São Paulo also leads the number of cities that adopted the Free Pass in 2023. Of the 31 municipalities that implemented the system this year, 10 are in São Paulo, followed by Minas Gerais (6), Santa Catarina (5), Rio de Janeiro (5), Paraná (3), Goiás (1) and Rondônia (1). “We are experiencing a time of expansion of the zero tariff policy in Brazil. 2023 was the year in which there were the most additions, and we are experiencing a very clear trend. There is a multiplication of experiences, there is what we call the contagion effect, that is, one neighboring city influences another, which influences the other, and things multiply”, highlights Santini. He highlights that the growth in the number of zero-fare cities in the country occurs within a context of a sharp drop in the number of public transport passengers and the consequent crisis in the financing system based on fare charging. Data from NTU (National Association of Urban Transport Companies) show that, in October 2013, 398.9 million passengers were transported in the country. In October 2022, this number fell to 226.7 million, a reduction of 43%. According to the researcher, the situation is a vicious circle. To obtain the same revenue with fewer passengers, it is necessary to increase the ticket price; The more expensive ticket, however, reduces the number of passengers. “The financing model based on turnstile revenue is no longer sustainable. We have experienced repeated cycles of passenger loss, and this has a direct influence on the maintenance and management of systems. And zero tariffs emerged as an alternative, as a possibility, and it is an especially interesting policy because it brings together a dimension that is social and environmental at the same time.” Engineer Lúcio Gregori, Secretary of Transport during Luiza Erundina’s administration at São Paulo City Hall (1989-1993) and developer of the Zero Tariff Project in São Paulo, states that, with the repeated increases in transport tariffs, part of the population stopped have the financial means to travel by public transport. “[A diminuição das viagens é decorrência] increasing tariff adjustments; for example, due to the increase in fuel prices. But, in general, the issue is tariffs. In other words, the fare increased at such a rate that users lost the ability to pay it and stopped using public transport. That’s fundamentally it.” Of the 94 cities that adopted the Free Pass in the country, only 11 have more than 100 thousand inhabitants, led by Caucaia, in Ceará, with a population of 355 thousand people; by Goiás Luiziânia (209 thousand); and by Maricá from Rio de Janeiro (197 thousand). The complexity of the transport systems in the most populous municipalities is highlighted as an obstacle to the adoption of zero fares in these locations. However, 2023 was the year in which more cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants adopted the free system for passengers, creating a new trend. There were six municipalities: Luiziânia (GO), with 209 thousand inhabitants; Ibirité (MG), with 170 thousand; São Caetano do Sul (SP), 165 thousand; Itapetininga (SP), 157 thousand; Balneário Camboriú (SC), 139 thousand; and Ituiutaba (MG), 102 thousand. “Cities with more than 100 thousand inhabitants are adopting zero tariffs, it is part of a trend. There is now a greater perception that it is possible to structure zero fares also in more populous cities, with more complex public transport networks”, says Santini. “While it is more challenging to work with a more structured network, you also need to remember that more populated cities tend to have a larger budget than smaller cities. This is also a potential”, adds the researcher. São Paulo The largest city in the country began, on the 17th, a partial Free Pass system for bus transport in the city, the Domingão Tarifa Zero Program. Tickets are not charged only on Sundays and on Christmas, New Year and city anniversary holidays (January 25), for the entire population. According to city hall data, the number of passengers who used the system on the first free pass Sunday grew 35% compared to previous Sundays: it went from 2.2 million to 2.9 million. In peripheral regions, the increase in the number of users reached 38%. “The city of São Paulo adopting zero fares on Sundays is a big step. We increasingly understand urban mobility as a tool for accessing the city. And the tariff is a barrier. Even with little publicity, on the first day, it had 35% more. This demonstrates that, in fact, ticket fees are a barrier to accessing the city”, highlights the director of the Instituto Multiplicidade e Mobilidade Urbana, Glaucia Pereira. She points out that the decision, even taken on the eve of an election year, is in line with the 2012 National Urban Mobility Policy, which provides that transport in cities must be managed to reduce inequalities and reduce social barriers. “São Paulo has always had electoral measures in transport, but the main electoral measure has always been to make asphalt [para o carro]. And this mayor has been laying asphalt [para o carro]. But even if this measure [do Passe Livre aos domingos] whether electoral, this is the first time that there is an electoral measure in accordance with the policy that says that mobility should, in fact, reduce inequalities and reduce barriers”, highlights Pereira.
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