Epress.am News from Armenia
As might be expected, passengers on Yerevan’s metro system reacted quite negatively to the news that fares will double starting from Jul. 1. These are some responses Epress.am heard while surveying passers-by outside metro stations today.
As previously reported, one-way fares for the Yerevan metro instead of the current 50 drams (about $0.14 USD) will increase to 100 drams (about $0.28 USD), which is the cost of public transportation buses, trolley buses and minibuses (marshrutkas).
“I take this quite badly, but what am I to do? I am going to continue to make use [of the metro],” said one passenger.
“Sister dear, it’s been about 20 years that I haven’t been living here; I’m here for a few days; I’m going to go back again — 100 drams? I don’t know what the situation is like here; I know only one thing, that the situation of people in Armenia is very poor; a most of the people are outside [the country], obviously, [the fare hike] is not good for the people — the cheaper, the better,” said a man by the name of Samvel.
“I can only say one thing: I live on Komitas [St.]. I’ll give 100 drams to get on from Komitas, I’ll get off at the [train] station, and I won’t get on the metro, good-bye to you,” said an older gentleman.
A group of youth informed Epress.am that they’re confident the number of subway passengers will drop once the fares go up. “People made use of [the metro] a lot because it’s cheap.”
“Ah, lucky us, there was one metro that was cheap, now it too became expensive, but we’re forced to use it — well it’s not bread that we can buy little by little, is it? You know what, everything drains the people. I use it often; let them think about the people a little bit; about the middle class, pensioners… I have nothing to say, it’s quite bad,” said pensioner Mariam Hovsepyan.
Subway staff selling fare tokens were also convinced that the fare hike will have an effect on the number of subway passengers.
Recall, in a press conference earlier today, Yerevan mayor Karen Karapetyan that the fare increase will foster the development and use the maximum potential of the subway, as well as making it financially self-sustainable.