Ukrainian refugees have been able to ride public transport for free in Oslo and the surrounding county of Viken, raising questions as to why all asylum seekers didn’t get the same privilege. Now they have, while Stavanger is making public transport free for all residents.
“We wanted to give a hand to everyone coming coming to our country who have empty hands and are in a difficult situation,” Sirin Stav of the Greens Party in Oslo’s city government told newspaper Klassekampen. The expansion of the free transport offer took effect earlier this month, and is honoured by the public transport operators Ruter, Brakar and Østfold kollektivtrafikk. It’s good for least the next year, when politicians will reevaluate the offer.
Stavanger’s Labour-led city government has gone a step farther in eliminating tickets for all residents from July 1 for the bus, ferries and trains. The problem is that government leaders didn’t inform the transport firms running the services or even city adminstators. They’re now scrambling to act on the decision, while bordering municipalities are crying foul since it puts pressure on them to offer the same. Others are claiming it’s all a political stunt to win more voters ahead of Norway’s municipal elections in September.
NewsinEnglish.no staff
