Portugal is set to launch a new monthly train ticket before 2024 is out, giving holders access to nearly all urban, regional, inter-regional and inter-city services run by state operator Comboios de Portugal (CP), for just €20 a month.
Approved by the Portuguese Council of Ministers in May 2024, the new pass will cost less than half the price of its predecessor scheme, which charged €49 for unlimited regional train travel. Its price point is also significantly lower than similar European schemes such as Hungary’s national pass and Germany’s Deutschlandticket.
Exclusions and restrictions
However, high-speed Alfa Pendular journeys will be excluded from the Portuguese pass, and neither is it going to be valid on metros or light rail systems. Travel on Lisbon and Porto Metropolitan Area urban trains will also attract an additional cost.
According to documents seen by Portuguese news agency Lusa, other restrictions include mandatory seat reservation at least 24 hours in advance on intercity services, with passengers only allowed to make two free seat reservations for two separate trips each day.
Uma medida que reforça o compromisso com a mobilidade sustentável e acessível para todos os portugueses. Deslize para ficar a saber as informações que precisa antes de usar este passe.#mobilidade #sustentabilidade #ferrovia
— República Portuguesa (@govpt) October 6, 2024
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Investing in people, the environment, and the future
Aimed at facilitating mobility while protecting the environment and part of the country’s green mobility plan, Prime Minister Luís Montenegro has hailed the pass as “an investment in people, an investment in the environment, an investment in the future”.
“Those who live in Braga and want to go to Porto or Aveiro, those who live in Aveiro and want to go to Leiria or Lisbon, those who live in Leiria and want to go to Lisbon or Faro, will have the opportunity, for €20 per month, to take advantage of the possibility of travelling on the Portuguese railway and, with that, be able to move around, protecting the environment,” he said, earlier this year.
Not everyone supports the Green Rail Pass
But critics of the pass say it will create a massive hole in public finances, as well as increasing demand on services that are already strained.
“To give you an idea of the financial impact of this National Pass, €20 is less than a 2nd class ticket on an Intercidades train from Lisbon to Coimbra (€21.30 in 2nd class; €26.85 in 1st class),” the Workers’ Commission said in a statement.
Germany has already had to up the price of its €49 ticket to €58 per month, a price rise Bavaria’s transport minister, Christian Bernreiteris said was “unavoidable” if the country is to avoid a deficit in public finances in 2025.
With the pass’s long-term viability in question, would-be holders are advised to act quickly to take advantage of some of the cheapest mobility in Europe.
