Large UHAP Survey: Passengers Want More Accessible Public Bus Transport and Lower Prices

The Association of Croatian Bus Carriers (UHAP), in collaboration with the renowned agency Ipsos, conducted an extensive survey to examine the population’s views on issues related to public bus transport for passengers. The survey, which includes leading domestic carriers such as FlixBus, Vincek, Slavonija Bus, Knežević, and others, revealed that the majority of citizens believe that the legal framework related to public bus transport needs to be amended, which would enable greater accessibility of the service, ultimately leading to stronger competition.

With increased competition, or a greater choice of bus carriers, respondents believe that we will achieve higher quality bus transport at lower ticket prices, as well as more options regarding travel to desired destinations and at desired times.

According to the survey results, as many as 66 percent of respondents see the greatest benefit of a potential opening of the market in public bus transport in the opening of routes to a greater offer of new destinations within Croatia, as well as an increase in the number of departures on existing routes. A high percentage of respondents agree with the statement that the Croatian market for public bus transport should be liberalized, confirmed by 84 percent of them. They agree that there is no need for the law to limit the number of carriers and that greater competition among carriers is needed, which ultimately offers more choices to passengers.

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Furthermore, the citizens’ stance on free and transparent ticket purchasing is also clear. Specifically, 72 percent of respondents disagree with the practice of certain station owners who are also carriers and sell only their own tickets at their stations. On the other hand, as many as 92 percent of respondents believe that bus tickets should be available for online purchase. In other words, the population at bus stations has a limited choice of ticket purchases and is often inadequately informed about all options.

The citizens’ inclination towards liberalization is confirmed by other responses. As many as 66 percent of citizens believe that passengers should be allowed to use international bus routes for transporting passengers between Croatian destinations, specifically that on the way to larger European cities, buses can transport passengers between domestic stations, which is currently not in accordance with regulations and therefore not allowed for Croatian bus carriers. When asked who would benefit the most from this, 48 percent of respondents believe that students studying in other cities would profit the most from the opening of the market, while a similarly large portion of the population (45 percent) believes that everyone would benefit from changes in the law.

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The demographic data obtained from the survey is also interesting, showing significantly who values bus transport the most. Young people are the most inclined towards the digital services offered by one of UHAP’s members, FlixBus. As many as 42 percent of their passengers are aged between 16 and 35 years. Respondents emphasize that the most important feature for them with FlixBus is the ability to purchase tickets online (87 percent), followed by the ability to show it in digital format to the driver (83 percent). Greater seat spacing and free internet on the bus have also proven to be important.

The conclusion of the survey is that the Croatian market for bus carriers needs to be opened more, which is agreed upon by more than 80% of respondents. They believe that the law should be adjusted to encourage greater supply, which will bring about a greater number of departures, possible destinations, and lower travel prices in general.