Riga, Feb 13 (LETA) - Last year, 41.78 million passengers were transported in subsidized regional public transport in Latvia, which is 795,930 passengers or 2 percent more than in 2024, the Road Transport Directorate (ATD) informed LETA.

Among them, 20.46 million passengers were transported on regional bus routes, 5 percent less than in 2024, while 21.32 million passengers were transported on regional train routes, 10 percent more than in 2024.

The directorate attributes the increase in train passenger numbers to the increase in traffic which started in 2024 and continued in 2025, as well as to significant improvements in the quality of services, such as new routes and the increased convenience and accessibility of public transport.

In ATD's view, these aspects have contributed to a shift of passenger flows from buses to trains, as well as attracting new passengers to train services.

ATD pointed out that in 2025, 51 percent of the total number of passengers on regional routes were carried by train, while in 2024 the share of passengers carried by train was 47 percent. This means that the number of passengers carried by train in 2025 has exceeded the number of passengers carried by bus for the first time and exceeded two million passengers per month during the summer months, the directorate noted.

At the same time, changes in the number of passengers on subsidized regional bus routes have been affected by changes in the opening and availability of commercial routes. In particular, the number of commercial routes reached 12 in 2025, compared to six in 2024. Consequently, in 2025, the commercial part of the route network will carry 1.07 million passengers, an increase of 33 percent or 264,390 passengers compared to 2024.

In total, 21.53 million passengers were carried on state subsidized and commercial bus services in 2025, a decrease of 810,790 passengers or 4 percent compared to 2024. Of the total number of passengers carried on bus routes in 2025, 95 percent were carried on subsidized routes and 5 percent on commercial routes, compared to 96 percent and 4 percent respectively in 2024.

In Latvia, subsidized regional public transport services carried a total of 40.98 million passengers in 2024.

ATD is the implementer of a single national policy on international transport, licensing of commercial road transport business and public transport planning.