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According to Linava, the Lithuanian National Road Transport Association, in March-September last year, the passenger transport sector suffered nearly 25 million. lost more than 64 million euros. Revenues fell by as much as 56% and passengers lost 74.4 million euros. or 42 percent.
According to Zenon Buivydas, general secretary of the Linava Association, the entire transport sector is going through difficult times, especially for small and medium-sized companies, which did not have sufficient financial resources before the pandemic.
“It is a difficult situation for passenger carriers: they can no longer offer the population the same long-distance routes as before the pandemic. The situation is difficult for both private and municipal companies, but it is extremely difficult for the latter, since they cannot claim any support when the private sector can still, at least in theory, benefit, for example, from INVEGA’s support. Your income, from the passengers. In the last year, when we had to suspend activities during the first quarantine and resume them in compliance with certain restrictions for security reasons, companies barely collect income for even the most necessary expenses: fuel, salaries, repairs, insurance ”, says Z .Buivydas. .
A representative for Linava says long-distance passenger transport carriers did not receive the necessary financial assistance from the state last year.
“The former leadership of the Ministry of Transport and Communications has been contacted repeatedly to request support for distressed passenger carriers. Unfortunately, we only heard the promises and in September we heard that there were no opportunities to help. Still, we really did them. There are. Specific proposals were made on how to redistribute the savings from the profit line, which is supervised by the Ministry, we asked for the possibility of receiving financial support for companies through Invega’s measures, we made many proposals. Everything is in vain. ”, Says Z.Buivydas.
We only heard promises and in September we heard that there were no opportunities to help.
According to carriers, the day may come when intercity passenger transport simply stops working because there simply won’t be any funds left to do so.
Vaidas Seirackas, director of Busturas, a passenger transport company in Šiauliai, says that urban passengers continue to be transported in cities, but long-distance transport activities depend on the number of passengers. If buses continue to run half empty due to restrictions, long-distance transportation will no longer exist.
Residents, who still do not always receive the necessary long-distance passenger transport, will also suffer as a result.
“Residents will also suffer as a consequence, that they still do not always receive the necessary long-distance passenger transport. There is also more and more talk in public spaces, when people are outraged that they did not take the bus, could not go where they needed to, or return home on time. The income of long-distance carriers consists of ticket sales, and we are selling less and less, because we can transport much fewer passengers due to quarantine restrictions, ”says V. Seirackas.
According to the head of Busturas, carriers transport less than 50 percent. crowded buses, as stated in quarantine requirements, no longer collect revenue for business continuity.
V. Siriras affirmed that during 2020, Busturas suffered more than 200,000 passengers due to long-distance passenger transport. loss of euros.
“To date, we continue to operate three of the 20 available routes, in the direction of Kaunas and Vilnius, where we still cover direct costs by collecting ticket revenue. All other routes are suspended for the time being and we do not plan to resume them until that there are no passenger flows, ”he said.
According to him, after resuming operations after the first quarantine, passenger carriers will not be able to fully fill buses, as safety requirements will have to be met and passengers will have to be seated in chess at every second seat. This means that income that continues to fall dramatically cannot be increased. This situation is driving passenger carriers out of business.
According to the carriers, the only type of support municipal companies use is the downtime subsidy to maintain jobs and the post-quarantine period during quarantine. Of this year. meter. January 1 this measure is no longer available.
Third country transport controls are almost non-existent
Linava has also asked the Ministry of Transport to tighten controls on carriers from third countries, which are currently almost non-existent. Thus, transport that does not meet technical, ecological and administrative requirements enters the market of our country, which is its competitive advantage over Lithuanian carriers, who are experiencing growing economic difficulties.
“They haul cargo with messy travel documents, they don’t fill out travel permits or use them multiple times, they drive with messy vehicle documents, unsealed technographs and major technical defects of the cars,” says Z.Buivydas.
According to the association, such reports are received several times a month by the institutions subordinate to the Ministry of Transport and Communications, but decisive decisions are lacking.
He also has the support of Vytas Bučinskas, vice president of the Linava Association, who believes that it is very important to intensify control during this period of intense negotiations with Russia on travel permits for 2021.
It is important to mention that carriers from countries such as Ukraine, Belarus, Uzbekistan have a surplus of Lithuanian permits.
“It is important to mention that carriers from countries such as Ukraine, Belarus and Uzbekistan have a surplus of Lithuanian permits. The fact that third country transport controls are almost non-existent enters our transport market that does not meet technical requirements, environmental and administrative. And this is nothing more than their competitive advantage, when Lithuanian carriers are highly controlled and inspected in other countries. Therefore, it must also be done with us, “says V. Bučinskas.
The loss of a competitive advantage over third country airlines also affects the State. In such a situation, Lithuanian companies lose orders and revenue, resulting in less taxes being collected in the state budget every year.
“We have noticed that by activating road controls, our carriers receive more orders. Therefore, the problem is. And, in fact, cars from third countries do not meet the requirements. In addition, it is important to protect the interests not only of companies , but also of all participants of Lithuanian road traffic. After all, technically disorderly vehicles on our roads also pose a threat to the safety of other road users. The authorities must do everything possible to ensure that safety. ” said the vice president of Linava.
Also, if there were more checks on non-compliant cars coming into our country, our local garages and other maintenance agencies would get additional work. Therefore, it would encourage local businesses and collect more taxes on our country’s budget.
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