Restoring transport discounts for students and pensioners postponed once again

The planned increase in public transport discounts for students and pensioners from the current 50% to 75% has been postponed once again — the measure is not included in next year's draft state budget. This was announced by Ministry of Transport spokesman František Jemelka.

"The increase in travel discounts is enshrined in the government's policy statement, and we are still counting on it. But the specific form and timing will depend on how much money can be found for it in the budget," Jemelka said.

History of the discounts and pre-election promises

The 75% discount was introduced by the previous government of Andrej Babiš (ANO) in September 2018. The following cabinet under Petr Fiala (ODS) reduced it to 50% starting in April 2022, deeming it too costly for the budget. Last year alone, the state paid carriers more than 5 billion crowns in compensation for the discounts. Ahead of last year's elections, ANO campaigned under the slogan "We will bring back the 75% travel discount for pensioners and students."

A specific date was later given by Transport Minister Ivan Bednárik (SPD): in February he spoke of raising the discount starting January 2027, although earlier both autumn and the end of this year had also been mentioned.

Not enough money in the budget

This week Bednárik said he had been forced to set priorities among transport expenditures and that there simply isn't enough money in the budget to raise the discounts from January 2027. He declined to say whether this might happen in 2028, noting that the decision would be made during preparations for the next state budget.

According to the Ministry of Transport, the state currently spends around 5 billion crowns a year compensating carriers for the discounts, and after a potential increase to 75%, that figure would rise to nearly 7.5 billion crowns.

Political scientist Milan Školník of the Czech University of Life Sciences considers such a departure from pre-election promises to be quite common: once in power, parties run up against real budgetary constraints. "There needs to be some kind of explanatory policy — what we can afford and what we can't," the expert noted.

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz