The Affordability Dilemma in the Public Transport System: Bogotá Experience

Public transportation affordability has a decisive influence on the city’s equity considering it can become “a significant obstacle to socio-spatial integration and an aggravating factor of other dimensions of social exclusion for the urban poor and the socially vulnerable.” (Oviedo, 2022, p. 327). In Bogotá, public transportation affordability represents a significant challenge, given that transportation expenses account for 23.9 to 26% of the income of the lowest-income households (Alcaldía Mayor de Bogotá, 2020, p. 312). Therefore, this essay seeks to examine how to achieve an affordable public transport system in Bogotá, Colombia, as a means to promote equity for the city’s low-income population. User expenditure in public transportation is defined by the fares paid by users. To achieve a financially sustainable public transport system, the contribution from user fares should be equivalent to the total system cost, or to the system cost minus the public budget contribution. Therefore, user fare contribution, public budget contribution, and system cost are key variables in the analysis of public transportation affordability. This essay will examine these three variables, with particular emphasis on reducing system costs through efficient operation.