Domestic bus and coach services will be exempt from VAT for a period of four months. Other changes to ticket prices in the Lahti region will also affect ticket prices, so the Public Transport Board decided not to apply the VAT exemption to fares.
The government’s intention to support the use of public transport by removing VAT will not be realised in the Lahti region. Passenger transport services have been temporarily exempted from VAT for the period January-April.
Other price changes are coming to bus services in the Lahti region at the same time. Thanks to the zoning reform to be implemented at the beginning of the year, some customers will pay less for their journeys.
For shorter journeys, there will be a small increase in fares. For example, the price of a two-zone adult value ticket will rise from €2.50 to €2.60.
The Public Transport Board decided on November 15 that the prices will not be changed during the VAT exemption. This would avoid several price changes and uncertainty. According to Rauno Särkkäaho, the introduction of the VAT exemption would have resulted in three price changes in the Lahti region within four months.