Estonians on track for free public transport

Estonians in the capital city of Talinn are soon to benefit from the arrival of free public transport.

It is the first EU capital to make the shift and is part of a green platform adopted by Talinn's mayor, Edgar Savisaar.

However, not everyone thinks the move will get cars off the road. The opposition fume that the idea is less about a clean environment and more about political opportunism.

Al Jazeera's Tim Friend reports from Talinn.

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  News & Politics

[miorlego]

at least you see where the money goes. what if you pay taxes and also the public transportation tickets?

[nec3dg]

Green economics are expensive because you invest in LONG TERM, this is what free market jihads and conservatives will never understand.

[dawiser1]

This is brilliant! Not only WILL it reduce private car usership (who wants to pay petrol/maintenance costs and sit in traffic jams when you can get there for free and faster) but it will have so many positive spin-off's e.g. increased economic activities along the PT routes and less emissions! And it works out alot cheaper than having to build enormous highways for private cars

[xxWhyIsTheRumGonexx]

I'm Estonian and I totally agree with you. How can the public transportation be free when you have to pay for the salaries, fuel, maintenance, reapairs and for the vehicles themselves? Sure, the taxpayers pay, so in the end there's no difference.

And guess what, elections are coming. It's the terrible populist party trying to buy stupid people's votes. Yes, we did learn our lessons, at least the majority of us. But there are those too who are unable to think :/

[Rebecca Smith]

Charge a tax for using cars! We pay taxes and still transportation is expensive

[Chris RoadWarrior]

Do I know YOU, have we ever met in real life face to face, cause YOU use the word "you" as you know everything about a person.

Adios.

[StrukkStar]

We don't actually spend much on our military presence in Afghanistas and the soldiers actually get paid by forgein nations through Nato and US etc. The money we do spend there is highly profitable for learning how to defend ourselves in the 21 century, that's invaluable experience you can't get anywhere else. I can tell you're really young and I advise you to stop commenting on stuff you do not understand.

[StrukkStar]

You want to know why educated people all over the world are generally anti-american? Because of people like you.

[StrukkStar]

No, there are no tax increases because of it and there never will be, you have a very wrong understanding how goverment works. What you could argue, is that the money could've been better spent somewhere else.

I can tell from how you speak that you're probably from US and you've been so brainwashed by the politicians and greedy companies, that you actually believe goverment shouldn't offer any services to it's citizens, that's not how we roll in Europe though and I'm glad we don't.

[Get out.]

eat shit.

[deshadower]

Nah, Stalinism is a Communism "tainted" by Stalin. Communism in its purer form would be something closer to Green ideology actually.