No more cash payments on Riga city buses

This, among other things, will allow drivers to better focus on their main task at hand

Starting 1 January, drivers on Riga’s public buses and trolleybuses will not deal with selling tickets to passengers anymore. Two main reasons are cited behind the implementation of this decision: increased popularity of digital code tickets and a desire for better traffic safety stemming from more focused drivers.

There are two exceptions to the new rule. Low-floor trams will have ticket vending machines and the drivers on bus line 22, which runs from the airport to the city centre, will accept bank card payments in order to accommodate visitors and newcomers to the Latvian capital.

Code tickets can be bought on two apps

Changes in the purchase of tickets will improve the work of Rīgas satiksme (the city public transit operator) tram, trolleybus and bus drivers, allowing them to pay full attention to safety on the road. The new arrangements will also help to prevent situations where counterfeit money or large denomination banknotes are presented to the driver, thus causing inconvenience and delays by having to count and return change during the journey. Other issues related to cash circulation will also be resolved.

When analyzing passenger buying habits, it was found that most tickets are purchased in advance and the introduction of the so-called ‘code ticket’ continues to increase the number of passengers who buy a ticket on a smartphone. The code ticket is currently used by more than 70,000 commuters.

To use the code ticket, one must first install an app on their smartphone - either “Rīgas satiksme” or “Mobilly” are available and a third one called “SP Grupa” is still being developed. After downloading the app, the user can purchase a ticket and activate it by scanning a code on the bus or entering the vehicle identification number shown below it. 

The other option is using an e-ticket (seen in the picture) which can be purchased in 400 different points throughout Riga.