Mainz trials monthly free travel to reach people who rarely use public transport

GERMANY: Tram and bus travel in Mainz is to be free of charge on the first Saturday of the month for a one-year trial period.

The impact on ridership and the benefits to the city will be evaluated by Rhein-Main University of Applied Sciences.

The first day of free travel was July 6, with no ticket required for travel between midnight and the end of operations. ‘On Saturdays we have enough free capacity to take on additional passengers without space problems or conflicts with commuters or schoolchildren’, said Jochen Erlhof, Managing Director of operator MVG.

The 0-Euro-Samstag offer is intended as a supplement to the Deutschlandticket, which is sold through a €49 monthly subscription and offers unlimited travel on local transport across Germany. Mainz operator MVG said almost 70 000 active D-Tickets are now in circulation through its own sales channels, and one in three residents of the city has one.

MVG said ridership in Q1 2024 was 20% up on the same period last year.

Head of the city’s transport department Janina Steinkrüger said ‘the Deutschlandticket has given a noticeable boost to the weak demand for public transport passengers after the Pandemic. This is very pleasing. But we also see that the Deutschlandticket appeals primarily to existing customers. With 0-Euro-Samstag, we want to specifically reach those who have not used our public transport service or have only used it rarely.’