Young people in La Rochelle under 26 years old, regardless of their status, will now be able to subscribe to Yelo buses for 100 euros per year, compared to 230 euros up to this point.
This new pricing was approved by the Agglomeration Community on Thursday, July 7. Bertrand Ayral (mayor of Saint-Soulle, vice-president for transport at the CdA), stated that this represents a 7% effort on bus revenue or 400,000 Euros per year.
The price list evolution is "completed" with another measure. It will be in summer 2023. This will affect the unit ticket that users purchase without a subscription. This change is necessary to adapt the system for modern payment methods such as telephone, bank card, and so on.
Bertrand Ayral explains that today's bus ticket prices are EUR1.30. It takes time for the driver, which is a problem. He does not drive during this time. It slows down his cadences. Multiply that number by the million tickets sold in a year and it becomes a fraction of a second multiplied by one million. This means that you will spend thousands less time driving and receive lower quality service.
This is why there is a lot of interest in "optimizing other solutions" to hard cash payments. The ticket price will be EUR1.20 for those who pay electronically (and in advance), and EUR1.50 for those who hand cash to the driver.
Bertrand Ayral also announced that certain services would be "adapted". Line 21 Yves-Thaire will be replaced by on-demand transport, in connection with connections to the TER at Chatelaillon-Plage station.
To strengthen the service to Beauregard-sur-Mer's colleges, two coaches were also bought. Two coaches were also purchased to strengthen the service to the colleges of Beauregard and Dompierre-sur-Mer.