The free public transport debate

As States like Tamil Nadu and Punjab adopt this route, we take a look at the pros and cons

In March 2020, Luxembourg became the first country in the world to make public transport free for its residents and tourists. The new rule allows everyone to board all modes of transport — buses, trains and trams — throughout the country without paying a fare. The concept of Fare-Free Public Transport (FFPT) isn’t new, with countries such as Australia and certain pockets of the US, among others, experimenting with it for many years. A few have the policy in play in particular states or districts, whereas others have rolled out the measure partially to certain sections of the population, such as the elderly, disabled, women and minors. This year, Tamil Nadu joined this list when Chief Minister M.K. Stalin announced free travel for women on basic-fare government buses. Since transport corporations stand to lose ₹1,200 crore in revenue a year due to the move, the government sanctioned the sum as a subsidy. Around the same time, Punjab’s Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh launched free travel in all non-AC intra-state buses for women and girls across the State. These moves have been lauded, as they should be, as they are a step towards making public transport more accessible. Women and girls form close to 50% of India’s urban population - yet they comprise only 19% of ‘other workers’ and 84% of their trips are by public, intermediate public, and non-motorised modes of transport (Census 2011). They are far more dependent on public transport than men and their travel patterns and timings are staggered, often combining multiple destinations in a single trip.