In an effort by Tehran City Council to cut losses and compensate for a small segment of funds required for manning and maintaining the capital’s expanding subway system, train fares are to see a rise in the coming weeks.
Higher subway ticket prices will be implemented as of April 21, according to a directive issued by the city council and ratified by the governorate.
Inner-city ticket prices will rise from 8,000 rials (15 cents at the Sunday rate on the open market) to 10,000 rials (18 cents). Passengers will be charged 75,000 rials ($1.4) in the line connecting Imam Khomeini International Airport to the city and the Tehran-Karaj ticket will cost 10,000 rials (18 cents), as reported by IRNA.
The sudden jump stems from the losses endured by Tehran Urban and Suburban Railway Operation Company. According to Mohammad Alikhani, a city councilor, metro transports 40 million people on a monthly basis and the income from the tickets is 200 billion rials ($3.77 million).
Cut Losses
Alikhani says the monthly net cost of running the subway system is nearly 800 to 900 billion rials ($15 million to $16.9 million) and the rise in ticket prices will make up for merely 120 billion rials ($ 2.2 million) of the losses endured by the business.
The price of Tehran-Karaj (line 5) ticket was proposed to be raised to 15,000 rials (28 cents), but media reports spoke of a counter-offer by Tehran’s Governorate to reduce the increase to 10,000 rials (18 cents), saying people have moved to suburbs to avoid the high cost of living in Tehran and the hike would put daily commuters at a disadvantage.
Another report said the rise is excessively higher than the law permits and the governorate is pressuring the council to modify the prices. The city council, however, negated the reports on Saturday, claiming that they have not received a written request nor have they held any meetings with the governorate to discuss cuts.
Under other provisions of the directive, the price of subway electronic cards will rise to 150,000 rials ($3) from the current 50,000 rials ($1), the metro will be free of charge during important holidays such as the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution and the public can enjoy a 30% discount on other holidays.
Ticket prices are relatively lower than almost all developed countries. A single ride ticket costs $3 in New York but services are significantly cheaper in developing countries—Cairo, for instance, 6 cents and Delhi 12.
The city council has not yet announced new fares for inner-city buses and taxis which are expected to observe a significant hike as well.
Development Plans
While Tehran Municipality has been struggling to keep trains running, it has pushed to raise public funds for the expansion of the Tehran subway system so as to avoid relying on national funds.
Mohsen Pourseyed Aqaei, deputy mayor for transport affairs, says 20 trillion rials ($377 million) worth of bonds will be issued dedicated to construction and expansion of lines 6 and 7 of the subway system.
Shahr Bank (City Bank) has currently distributed bonds worth 7 trillion rials ($132 million) and the remaining will be issued by April 20.
The deputy mayor says other banks will also issue bonds related to the development of the subway to facilitate financing the construction of lines 6 and 7.
“In total, 40 trillion rials worth of bonds will be sold for the subway’s expansion.”
Metro’s budget has experienced a 50% increase in the fiscal started in March, due to the rise in the annual budget and issuance of bonds.
A considerable dispute revolves around lines 6 and 7, both currently under construction. Line 6 is estimated to become operational by March 2019.
Line 7 was briefly launched last year by the municipality under former mayor Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, who is accused by the public and specialists of rushing the opening to muster votes for the presidential election. An election he withdrew from less than one week before the May polls.
Qalibaf’s successor Mohammad Ali Najafi ordered the line closed in November due to rising concerns over the safety of passengers.
Recent Improvements
During the fiscal ending in March 2018, the headway for subway cars was reduced from 5-6 minutes to 4 minutes in lines 1, 2 and 4. The waiting time for line 3 was previously 18 minutes, which has halved to 9 minutes.
Another part of the agenda is to gradually construct additional entrances for all subway stations.
Aqaei says all stations must have at least two entrances, mentioning the death of several pedestrians trying to cross the street to reach subway stations.
Multiple entrance doors help pedestrians to use underpasses to reach their destinations and avoid crowds and traffic on the streets.
The city’s subway system comprises seven main lines (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7, of which lines 3, 6 and 7 are yet to be completed) with nearly 100 stations.
The trains and stations are almost always overcrowded during the rush hours and commuters can hardly get on and off the trains with ease. The municipality recently added 44 cars to the subway system as a means of alleviating the problems.
