40 Soms for a Ride on Bishkek Buses—Too Much?

Friday, January 17, 2025, 12:15 Economist Weighs In on the Mayor’s Plan to Raise Fares Bishkek’s mayor’s office has proposed doubling the cash fare on public transport from 20 to 40 soms. Economist Iskender Sharsheev explained to Vesti.kg whether the increase is justified under current economic conditions. “This move encourages a switch to cashless payments,” Sharsheev noted. “Handling paper money is costly—creating and maintaining infrastructure is expensive, and cash theft in the service sector can reach up to 20%. Encouraging people to go cashless can cut logistics costs, speed up the economy, and reduce paper consumption. Although there are some risks, they aren’t serious enough to abandon these innovations.” Sharsheev acknowledged that a higher fare could be painful for many passengers. However, he pointed out that most vendors at local markets already use electronic wallets, indicating that the shift to digital payments makes sense. The proposal to raise the fare to 40 soms has been submitted for public discussion, according to Ulanbek Beishenbaev, Director of the Department of Transport and Development of Road and Transport Infrastructure at the mayor’s office. He emphasized that the current 3-som difference in fares (between cash and cashless) does not sufficiently motivate passengers to switch to electronic payments. Source: https://vesti.kg/obshchestvo/item/134610-tarif-na-proezd-v-avtobusakh-pri-oplate-nalichnymi-khotyat-povysit-vdvoe.html