Public transport operators launch new €59 summer ticket for young people

This summer - from 29 June to 1 September inclusive - young people aged 18 to 24 will be able to travel anywhere in Belgium for under €60, not only on trains, but also on TEC, De Lijn and Stib public transport in Wallonia, Flanders and Brussels respectively.

“This is a dream opportunity to go and discover Ardennes villages by train and bus, visit Brussels in the S train or metro or travel down the Belgian coast with the famous tram,” Belgian train operator SNCB said.

“The summer period is very often synonymous with travelling and new discoveries. Nearly three quarters of young adults already combine or intend to combine the train with other means of public transport.

"The four public transport companies have developed this integrated offer together, that will be used in a test phase from 29 June to 1 September."

SNCB chief executive Sophie Dutordoir said the advantages of this new “simplified, attractive and useful” ticket are clear.

“Our different surveys have shown that young people are particularly keen to have a formula combining different means of transport," she said.

"After a thorough analysis, we have decided to go for a summer monthly ticket dedicated to the 18-24 year olds and hope this initiative will encourage more passengers to use public transport more for leisure trips."

The €59 "Youth Holidays Combi", advertised in social media and posters throughout Belgium under the slogan "Binge Belgium", allows unlimited travel for any 30-day period in the summer holidays.

It is offered in addition to the Youth Holidays ticket which gives 12-26 year olds unlimited train travel for €35 a month or €18 a week. A supplement is necessary to go to and from Brussels-Zaventem airport.

Belgium’s four mobility ministers said in a joint statement: “Being able to use buses, trams and trains across the three regions without any difficulty is the future. This first free travel pass that will be put on sale this summer signals the future of mobility in our country.

“Young people who have these tickets can travel throughout Belgium without any restriction, via the 555 SNCB stations and nearly 45,000 stops on the Stib, TEC and De Lijn networks. Simplifying travellers’ lives, that is what will contribute to making public transport more attractive and will convince ever more people to get on board.”

In practice, any young person who already has a personalised Mobib card for the tram, metro and bus will only need to get the card formatted at an SNCB office when making the purchase, as they would when buying Youth Holidays tickets.

People with SNCB Mobib cards only can get their Youth Holidays Combi pass at ticket offices, ticket machines or via the SNCB website. Anyone without a Mobib card will need to buy one for €6 at the SNCB ticket office or order it via www.sncb.be (with delivery taking up to five working days).