Published: 3 May 12 14:49 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/40614/20120503/
The Swedish Arts Council (Kulturrådet) has come under fire for providing public funds to help an organization that encourages Swedes to dodge paying fares on public transit systems around the country.
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On top of that, the fare fines are non binding. I've seen people shrug off the fare enforcers and walk away at a good clip into the city night, and the fare enforcers cannot do a thing.
NYC cleaned up violent crime by stopping people who jumped the subway turnstyles, because murderers and armed robbers who were at large were among the people who jumped the turnstyles.
Because there is no serious punishment for murder or other violent crimes in Sweden, but there is punishment for tax evasion, Sweden should might as well get serious about the people who do not buy subway passes. A few murderers and armed robbers might get to see some jail time.
Editor: typo in your first sentence:' fairs' should be 'fares'.
If the government does not bring the prices down then they should at least provide an alternative, maybe a free bicycle for each household, student etc...this way you can minimise pollution and increase the health standards. The country is expensive enough, and the tourism industry will suffer if the ticket prices keep going up.
It is a lose-lose situation here.
Free public transport = higher taxes for everybody, even those who do not use the system. Free bicycles also cost tax money, must be maintained/replaced, and do not work that well in the winter.
I do agree however that it is obscene to rip off tourists, with fake taxis, tax surcharges at the Arlanda Express taxi stop, and too high SL fares for short use passes and those paper strip tickets (an SL scumbag once stamped a 3 zone trip on mine before I had a chance to respond, wasting nearly half of my ticket strip). This is giving the cold shoulder to tourists, who hate being nickled and dimed to death. Either the tourist board here has no imagination or no real authority to make meaningful changes to SL's prices.
When I used the t-bana to travel into Stockholm's T-Centralen every day, I reckon half the people (in some instances) just vaulted over the barrier (all the time of course talking on their mobile phones) and boarded the trains
Ideally, everyone should pay the amount that corresponds to the actual transportation needs of such individual. If he or she does not use PT and drives a car instead then this person should not be paying for PT at all (directly or indirectly through taxes). If a person needs to take a few journeys during a single day, do not force him or her to pay the amount equal to five days of use. Let the daily ticket be priced at 26 SEK (i.e. 790 / 30). And then you would not need zones, as at the price of 26 SEK per day you can travel in all zones.
Alternatively, if the PT is tax-funded, remove the fees for passengers completely, as they have already paid for it. In the same way as education is free, or kindergartens. Issue to all taxayers a special card that serves as a free pass to the PT. Tourists and non-residents would have to buy a ticket as usual.
The museums used to be free a few years ago. The moderaterna changes that.
#10 is right on the money. It COSTS to run transportation. If people are not charged fares for the use, the money will be taken out of taxes instead, and probably increase those, and those of us who do NOT use the public transportation will be paying for others.
Was wondering the same: highest taxes and most expensive public transportation. Doesn't add up.