Argentina: Metro ticket prices increased by 360 percent

Ticket prices for a single metro ride in Buenos Aires – the oldest in Latin America – rose from 125 pesos (55 PLN) to 574 pesos (2.54 PLN). This is the result of Thursday’s court decision, which lifted the temporary ban on price increases introduced at the request of the Left Opposition.

According to the authorities of the Argentine capital and the company SBASE, which operates the metro The increase is necessary due to the increase in operating costsresulting from inflation. This amounts to nearly 290 percent year over year.

Further increases have been announced in the coming months. From the beginning of June, tickets will cost 650 pesos (PLN 2.88), and from the beginning of August – 757 pesos (PLN 3.35).

Public transport ticket prices are a sensitive issue in Latin America, where there are broad social classes. In 2019, a relatively small increase in metro fares in Santiago sparked major protests and anti-government riots in Chile. High transportation prices are one of the components of the significant increase in the cost of living in Argentina, as some estimates indicate Half of the population lives below the poverty line. The financial situation of many families has deteriorated further due to liberal reforms introduced by the president who was sworn in in December.

Miley reduced transportation subsidies, unfroze the prices of some goods, and devalued the peso against the dollar, contributing to a sharp increase in the cost of living. He also reduced pensions and real wages in the public sector. The president claims that reforms are necessary to get Argentina out of the crisis and stop inflation, and the country achieved a budget surplus in the first months of the year.