Tórshavn Municipality proposes charging foreign tourists for city bus use in the Faroe Islands

According to the finance committee of Tórshavn Municipality, foreign tourists should be required to pay for using the city bus route. Additionally, residents from other parts of the Faroe Islands may also face charges.

One of the 25 agenda items on the city council’s meeting tonight concerns a new charging system for the bus route.

Currently, using the bus service is free for all users, meaning the municipality and its taxpayers fund the local bus route in the capital. Last year, operating the bus service cost around 36 million Danish krónur.

For years, there has been a political push to amend the system so that at least foreign tourists would pay for bus access, with proposals also mentioning other Faroese residents. It has been suggested that the existing free system negatively impacts competition for taxi services in the capital.

The new charging scheme outlines three types of travel tickets: a 24-hour ticket, a three-day ticket, and a weekly ticket. Initially, prices were suggested at 50, 120, and 210 krónur respectively, based on comparisons with prices in places like Reykjavík. However, after a recent review by the finance committee, the proposed prices have changed to 100 krónur for a same-day ticket, 200 krónur for a three-day ticket, and 500 krónur for a weekly ticket.

There is, however, disagreement within the finance committee regarding these prices. The majority, led by members including Heðin Mortensen and Kári Johansen, support the higher prices, while Jákup Dam advocates for the original proposal.

There is no timeline yet for when the new system will be implemented, though it is possible it could take effect at the beginning of the year. Unresolved issues remain, particularly about whether the system should also apply to other Faroese residents from the outset, which could affect students, such as those attending Glasir.