Prague extends open loop contactless fare payments to city buses
Prague has an extensive public transport network that is rated as one of the best and most reliable in Europe. Thanks to public transport, you can reach even the most remote corners of the metropolis quickly and easily. Passengers travelling on buses, electric buses and trolley buses in Prague, Czech Republic can now use their physical or digital debit or credit card to purchase tickets for their journeys from onboard contactless self-service terminals rather than in advance or from the driver. prague public transport tickets
Public transport operator Prague Public Transit Company (Dopravní Podnik Prahy) has installed 1,200 contactless ticket terminals on all its buses after completing a rollout of the system across its tram and subway networks that began in 2019.
Orange ticket terminals are uniformly located near the second door, regardless of vehicle type. The color touch screen offers communication in Czech, German and English. The cashless terminal offers single-trip fares or short-term tickets for connections within the capital. city of Prague, i.e. bands P, B and 0, both for 30 or 90 minutes or 24 hours, including a reduced fare option.
A popular payment tool
In addition to the newly installed terminals in buses, electric buses and trolleybuses, it has been possible to pay fares with a valid Europay, MasterCard or Visa association debit or credit card for several years in the metro, tram cars and cable cars. Using cashless payment to purchase fares is very popular among passengers. This is also evidenced by the growing number of purchases through this method over the past three years:
- 2020 – 1,858,093
- 2021 – 2,682,288
- 2022 – 3,682,288
Since the beginning of the pilot in April 2016, passengers have used the system to purchase more than 14m tickets across the city’s transport network to date, the firm says.
At present, passengers can only use the system to purchase physical tickets, but the transport operator says it plans to introduce digital ticketing and “other functions to passengers” in the future.
End of additional sales on city lines prague public transport tickets
The installation of ticket terminals ends the additional sale of tickets by drivers on city bus routes, which was effectively canceled already during the pandemic. The exception is the Airport Expres (AE) line with a special tariff and all PID suburban bus lines, where the sale of tickets at the driver’s desk for cash or cashless continues without changes.
Public transport in Prague consists of:
Metro
Three color-coded lines form the city’s transport backbone.
- Line A (green): Depo Hostivař – Nemocnice Motol
- Line B (yellow): Černý Most – Zličín
- Line C (red): Letňany – Háje
Transfer nodes are located at the Můstek (A, B), Muzeum (A, C) and Florenc (B, C) stations.
The journey by metro from one end of Prague to the other takes about 30 to 45 minutes. The interval at peak hours ranges from 2 to 4 minutes, during non-peak hours, it is never more than 10 minutes; at night from Friday to Saturday and from Saturday to Sunday, the interval is 20 minutes.
Trams
Trams are a reliable and convenient option for surface transport.
Intervals: peak hours every 8–10 minutes, off-peak every 10–20 minutes, night connections every 30 minutes.
The backbone tram lines 9, 17 and 22 run at half intervals (4 minutes during peak hours and 5-10 minutes off-peak).
For sightseeing tours we recommend using the “nostalgic line” 42
Important notice: At pedestrian crossings, trams always have the right of way over pedestrians!
Buses
Getting on and off the bus is possible through all the doors of the bus.
Intervals: peak hours every 6-8 minutes, off-peak hours every 15-30 minutes; night operation every 30-60 minutes.
| TICKET PRICES The full fares structure for public transport tickets in Prague is quite complicated, due to reductions offered to holders of Czech-issued ID. Therefore, the following table is a summary of the public transport tickets available to tourists. |
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| Ticket Validation: Once you have bought a ticket, it must be validated at the time of travel. Punch the ticket in one of the orange or yellow machines located at the entrance to the metro, or inside trams and buses.
Free Travel: Seniors 65+ years and children 0-14 years are eligible for free travel, and do not require a ticket. They must carry a passport/photo ID with their date of birth (DOB) and present it for inspection if requested by a transport official. |
