Government announces lower ticket prices to boost use of new Thessaloniki metro

Ahead of the opening of the new metro in Thessaloniki at the end of November, the Greek government announced lower ticket prices for the metro and the bus over the next six months, in an effort to encourage and facilitate the combined use of public transport in the bottlenecked city.

A ticket for the new metro will cost 0.60 cents. A purchase of a 10-ticket bundle will provide an extra ticket for free (10+1), at a cost of 5.80 euros in total, Infrastructure and Transport Minister Christos Staikouras announced during a meeting with the Thessaloniki Transport Authority (OSETh) and the Thessaloniki Urban Transport Organization (OASTh) on Monday.

Authorities believe this will encourage passengers to begin using the new metro which is expected to be finished by November 30.

An urban bus ticket price will drop from the current 0.90 to 0.60 euro. For a bundle of 10 with a free one (10+1), the price will also be 5.80 euros.

Tickets with longer duration (one month, two months, year, etc.) will provide further savings to commuters. As an example, an unlimited 30-day travel card will cost 16 euros, for either/both metro and bus use. The monthly bus card currently costs 27 euros.

At the end of the six months, the prices will be reviewed and adjusted as necessary.