On more than half of Volánbusz’s lines, it examined the use of the national and county passes introduced from May 1 between June 26 and July 16, 2023, the company told MTI on Wednesday.
The purpose of the action was to assess the functioning of the validation of the new pass type at take-off, to reveal possible difficulties, and based on the summary of experiences, the company would find a solution to the problems that arose, they wrote in the announcement.
It was emphasized that the introduction of national and county passes on May 1 was an innovation of significant importance in the history of transport in the life of the Hungarian public passenger transport service. The start of sales of the new pass types was preceded by serious preparation and professional work, thanks to which the introduction of the new fare products went almost smoothly on Volánbusz flights as well.
It was explained that the employees who took part in the three-week survey personally assessed the habits of passengers and bus drivers regarding the use and validation of national and county passes on the flights of 1,548 bus lines, using questionnaires, as well as the functioning of the validator devices used to validate the passes.
During the survey, which was carried out both during peak and off-peak times, 93 percent of passengers validated their passes automatically upon boarding, so it can be said that they were informed about the use of the new system. In the vast majority of cases, bus drivers called the attention of passengers who did not validate their passes to complete the procedure. Those conducting the survey found that 96 percent of the bus drivers had already done their work in compliance with the new rules, they wrote in the announcement.
During the examination of the functioning of the validator devices, it was revealed that the validators validated the passes on the first or at most the second attempt in more than 80 percent of the cases, Volánbusz said.
In the announcement, it was mentioned that the company is looking for a solution for the effective management of the revealed problems, including minor technical problems related to the operation of the validators. As part of the regular training of bus drivers, Volánbusz continues to place a lot of emphasis on the detailed process and rules for validating and checking new types of passes, with particular regard to, for example, the verification of the ID shown on the pass.
The company expects that the smoother flow of passengers thanks to the measures will help raise the level of service, increase passenger satisfaction, and thereby improve the working conditions of the bus drivers, Volánbusz informed.
Passengers can find information on the orszagberlet.hu website and in a short and informative video about how to validate paper-based and electronic county and country passes on Volánbusz flights – the transport company drew attention.
(MTI)
Photo: Yvette Frank
