Night buses in Riga have carried nearly 22,000 passengers in just under half a year. This is roughly twice as many as last year, when there were significantly fewer night routes. Most night routes ended their season at the end of September, but buses between the airport and the city centre will continue to run, Latvian Radio reported on October 12.
This year, the first night route was launched in April between the city centre and the airport. Less than a month later, seven more routes were added: to Mežciems via Teika and Jugla, and to Vecmīlgrāvis, stopping at Sarkandaugava, Iļģuciems and Daugavgrīva. There were also routes to Imanta, Zolitūde and Āgenskalns, a separate route to Purvciems, Pļavnieki and Dārzciems, to Ķengarags and also to Ziepniekkalns.
The new routes ran only at weekends until the end of September, whereas the service to the airport continues to run every night. In just under half a year, this was the most popular route – more than 7,300 passengers were carried between the city centre and the airport, accounting for a third of all passengers carried on the eight routes.
The second most popular route was between the city centre, Teika, Jugla and Mežciems, which carried around 3,500 passengers.
Baiba Bartaševiča-Feldmane, a spokesperson for “Rīgas satiksme”, said: “What we did this season, unlike last year, was to significantly increase the number of routes, combining as many large and extensive neighbourhoods as possible where night services could operate. This was the optimal solution, which was also implemented. As is usually the case – and this summer season was no exception – the highest passenger numbers are on the first services immediately after midnight. The closer it gets to morning, the lower these passenger numbers become.”
Last year, “Rīgas satiksme” observed that demand for night-time transport fell in October, so this year they decided to run the service until the end of September, although demand between the city centre and the airport remains. Riga Airport, which handles several flights at night, is delighted with this service. “Latvijas Pasts”, located next to the airport, is also pleased. Around ten employees, who previously travelled to work by private transport, regularly use the night buses.
A company spokesperson, Annija Prisjolkova-Bottiglieri, said: “We predict that this number is likely to increase as we approach the peak parcel season, which is the Christmas period. Then this service will certainly become even more in demand. We haven’t heard any comments suggesting that anyone is dissatisfied with anything. It seems that everyone is happy. Those who use the service do so regularly.”
A ticket on the night buses costs the same as on daytime services – 1.5 euros – and is valid for 90 minutes. Marta Kotello, chair of the Riga City Council’s Public Space and Mobility Committee and a member of the Progressives, said that there are no plans to increase fares for the time being.
“As far as I’m concerned, and on behalf of the Progressives, night-time public transport should definitely continue. There are various options. This year, the night service only ran during the warmer months and only at weekends. There are various options – whether the night service runs all year round only at weekends, or, for example, runs every day but only during the warmer months. We will analyse the data, and then, depending on budgetary constraints, we will work out what the next step might be next year and how to improve the service,” said Kotello.
Although many people used the night bus service this summer, demand for taxis has not decreased. This was stated by Bolt, the largest provider of this service. Kristīne Bezerra-Kjerulfa, head of the ride-sharing business in Latvia, said that they support the development of public transport.
“We are working very hard to attract more drivers, as we also feel that demand in Rīga significantly exceeds what our platform is able to provide. It is therefore reasonable to assume that, naturally, many people also opted for public transport when the opportunity arose. There is a survey carried out by ‘Norstat’ on residents’ travel habits during the night. It indicates that people very often choose public transport to get to an evening event. According to their data, almost half of those surveyed in Rīga acknowledged this. However, ride-sharing services are becoming the primary way of getting home after an event. This was indicated by the same half of those surveyed,” said the Bolt representative.
Last year, a pilot scheme with three night-time routes cost 100,000 euros, whilst this year, eight routes have cost around 250,000 euros. It is not yet known how much the local authority might allocate to this next year.
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