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One in three seniors buy new De Lijn pass

10:00 18/08/2015

One in three seniors has purchased the €50 annual pass for public transport authority De Lijn, as free travel for the over-65s ends at the end of this month. So far the offer has been taken up by 271,289 of those eligible.

“That is better than expected,” said De Lijn CEO Roger Kesteloot. “Our goal was to have at least 200,000 pass holders over 65 by the first of September. We’re already ahead of that. That shows that €50 is a reasonable and acceptable social tariff.”

De Lijn wrote to all 902,000 over-65s in Flanders explaining that busses and trams were no longer free for them and offering the annual pass. By comparison, an annual pass for an adult costs €294. The sales to seniors to date have brought in more than €13.5 million for De Lijn, which is faced this year with having to make savings of €35 million.

The 65+ group is the first to receive their passes in the form of a MOBIB card, the new electronic chip card being introduced by De Lijn. “An annual pass is advantageous for anyone who makes more than 35 trips in a year,” explained a de Lijn spokesperson. “Of course a senior is not obliged to buy a pass. They can also pay per trip.”

Public transport user group TreinTramBus (TTB) agreed the price is acceptable, but called for the money to be spent on improving services. “Following three savings rounds, there’s no more fat to be trimmed off,” said TTB president Stefan Stynen. “Cuts are being made to Sunday services and night buses, and capacity is falling. De Lijn urgently needs to do something.”

Photo courtesy De Lijn

Written by Alan Hope