French region offers free public transport to 1 million young people

In a first for Europe, the south-western French region of Occitanie has made public transport free to those aged between 12 and 26 – a total of one million young people.

A regional express train (TER) passes near the village of Avignonet-Lauragais, between Carcassonne and Toulouse, in south western France. © AFP - Eric Cabanis

"Insecurity for students is too high in our country," said Carole Delga, the Socialist Party president of Occitanie, on Friday at an event launching the initiative at Toulouse's Matabiau train station.

"We're making sure that transport doesn't put a strain on young people's wallets. There is a financial interest, but also an ecological one."

Young users can benefit from free travel on 21 train lines and 370 coach lines by downloading an app.

Prioritising public transport

"The aim is also to get younger people used to travelling by public transport," said Delga.

"We really wanted to ensure that trains and buses complemented each other to allow as much mobility as possible."

Grâce à "+=0", 110 000 jeunes d'#Occitanie profitent déjà de la gratuité à l'usage dans les #trains et #cars #liO !
Cette offre booste la mobilité et le pouvoir d'achat des 12-26 ans👍
RDV demain à la #gare Matabiau de #Toulouse à 10h30 pour en savoir ➕https://t.co/pm0lOegLA0 pic.twitter.com/Pnro7edwCz

— Région Occitanie (@Occitanie) January 11, 2024

In 2021, Occitanie introduced free school transport for 180,000 young people, followed by free trains for 18-26 year olds.

According to the region, these initiatives have led to a greater increase in regional train use than elsewhere in France, with 20 percent more passengers in 2023 than in 2022.

The number of young people using public transport also increased tenfold in four years.

(with AFP)