Commuter angry over undersized morning bus that left passengers standing; transport authority explains carrier duties

The LA.LV newsroom has received a letter from a reader, Solvita, about a morning public bus service that was run with a bus too small for the number of passengers. She argues that such cases affect passenger safety and the accessibility of public transport. In Latvia, bus services are overseen by the Road Transport Directorate (ATD), which explained what carriers are obliged to do.

What happened

Solvita takes the bus to work every day; her workplace is about 20 kilometres from home. She says the morning service is usually crowded but has enough seats. On a recent morning, the stop had an especially large number of schoolchildren, and the bus that arrived turned out to be small. It was clear at first glance that not everyone would fit, and at least ten more stops remained before the destination, where other passengers usually wait too.

She notes that the next bus comes only an hour later, while adults need to get to work and children to their first lesson. Many passengers had to stand during the trip, while some gave up and called relatives to drive them instead. Solvita suggests the cause might be operating costs, including higher fuel prices, as well as discounts used by holders of the “3+ Family Card”. These are her own assumptions.

The directorate's explanation

ATD states that a carrier must operate a service with a bus whose capacity matches the information given in ticketing systems. If the planned bus has to be replaced because of a technical or other unforeseen problem, the replacement must have identical or greater capacity. The directorate acknowledges that in emergencies the required bus may be unavailable, but says this is still a deviation from the planned organisation of the service.

Primary responsibility for using a suitable bus and for ensuring accurate seat information lies with the carrier, since ticketing platforms sell tickets based on data supplied by the carrier.

Passenger rights

A passenger who cannot take the seat stated on the ticket, or an equivalent one, has the right to cancel the trip and get the fare refunded. If the carrier cannot provide an equivalent seat and the passenger declines to travel, they may also be entitled to compensation for direct losses under the established procedure.