The annual student pass to the Brussels public transport network, STIB, will cost just 12 euros from 1 July, the Brussels Government announced on Sunday in a press release.
For non-student youths aged 18 to 24 years, this fare will take effect from February 2022.
The Brussels Government said it had decided to introduce “a clear, and much more affordable ‘youth’ fare for the 12 to 24 age group” as part of its effort to make public transport more accessible.
"Every young Brussels resident needs to be able to move around in our region without too much difficulty or expense,” Brussels Prime Minister Rudi Vervoort commented.
“I am therefore very happy that the government is able to establish this new fare. I hope that will facilitate students’ commutes and encourage young citizens to use the high-quality services offered by our STIB network even more,” the Brussels Prime Minister added.
For her part, Brussels Mobility Minister Elke Van Den Brandt, who is from the Groen (Green) party, stressed that “habits acquired while young stay with us for a long time.”
"To convince even more young people to take public transport, we are offering them a much more affordable fare for a longer time,” she explained.
The regional authorities recalled that the Brussels Intercommunal Transport Company, STIB, transported over 400 million travelers each year and that its network of buses, trams and subways would expand in the next few years.
Total seats in buses will increase by 20%, while seven tramlines and one subway line will be added, they said.
“With this youth fare, the Brussels Government wishes resolutely to convince young people to use public transport whenever possible,” the authorities stressed.
“The other, existing reductions will be maintained,” they said, adding that concrete information on the exact modalities of sales would follow as soon as possible.
The Brussels Times
