Transport companies respond to the changed usage of public transport due to the COVID-19 virus pandemic.
Public transport companies operating in Bratislava and its vicinity are changing their schedules to better fit the changed usage of public transport due to the COVID-19 virus pandemic. Closed schools and business have resulted in a lower usage of public transport and a following drop in sales for transport companies.
The Bratislava Transport Company (DPB) operating public transport in Bratislava, is introducing a special timetable for trams and trolleybuses as of Monday, April 20. With this change DPB is responding to the reduced number of passengers. It promises that this change will not mean any loss of connections, only an extension of waiting times.
“The changes are taking place following the decision of Bratislava City Council in its role as commissioner of transportation services,” said Matej Michlík, spokesperson for DPB, adding that the aim of the city council is to find a balance between efforts to secure the mobility of citizens and visitors of Bratislava as well as coping with the deep drop in DPB sales.
“The special regime ‘Working Day (COVID-19)’ will extend the intervals between tram and trolley bus services,” said Michlík, as cited by the TASR newswire. “These will be compensated for by the renewal of tram line 7 during morning and afternoon peak hours and keeping the current intervals between trolleybus lines 33 and 211.”
Trams on line No. 7 will run from Rača via ŽST Vinohrady to the Main Station and back at 7-8 minute intervals during the morning peak hours.
Trolleybuses on line No. 33 will run during working days according to the holiday schedule.
Trolleybus line No. 201 will be strengthened during the morning peak hours when each second trolley bus will run only between the Main Station and the Hraničná stop and will not continue to the Dolné Hony district.
Trolleybuses on line No. 211 will run during the morning as well as afternoon peak hours at 15-minute intervals.
Trams and trolleybuses on the remaining lines will run to the regime of the Working Day (COVID-19) with extended intervals. These will be marked orange in the schedules at the stops.
As of April 20, DPB is resuming operation of lines 25, 26 and 92 in response to the re-started production at Volkswagen during working days.
Regional public transport
The regional public transport company, Slovak Lines, running in the vicinity of Bratislava, is adding buses to its current schedule as of Sunday, April 19. Its busses have already been running according to the Saturday schedule with some additional buses for one month.
“After the analysis of inputs from passengers and the number of passengers travelling by these buses, we have added new connections during hours when the number of passengers is high and when there was no train running,” said Pavol Labant, general director of Slovak Lines, as cited by the TASR newswire, believing that these changes would increase comfort and reduce the risks of a higher number of passengers in a bus.
The Saturday schedule remains the basis of the new schedule, which is extended with additional connections. These are published on the website of Slovak Lines, http://www.slovaklines.sk, as well as placed at each affected stop.
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