As of June 27, the cost of travel in urban minibuses in Odesa has officially increased to 25 UAH. Private carriers explain this increase by the rising cost of fuel and increased maintenance costs. Meanwhile, the city council doubts that the tariff increase alone will improve the quality of transportation. This is reported by Suspilne.
Why transportation has become more expensive in Odesa
The head of the permanent commission on transport issues of the Odesa City Council, Petro Obukhov, noted that carriers may indeed have faced rising costs due to the increase in the price of diesel fuel and other operational components.
At the same time, he emphasized that the economic justification of the new tariff can only be assessed after analyzing the financial calculations of the carriers.
«In order to answer whether there is indeed a point in this increase, we need to see all the accounting, all the arithmetic: how many passengers they carry, what their expenses and revenues are. We haven't seen such calculations», - Obukhov said.
Will transportation improve after the tariff increase
According to the deputy, the increase in travel costs does not mean automatic improvement in service.
He explained that public transport in Odesa effectively consists of two separate systems. The first is municipal trams and trolleybuses, which are funded from the city budget and receive about 1 billion UAH in subsidies each year. The second is private minibus transportation, where the main goal is to generate profit.
«I think the quality will not change at all. Private transport primarily operates to make profit for owners, so without additional requirements, improvements are unlikely», - he said.
The city council speaks of a lack of competition
Petro Obukhov also noted that there is practically no competition in the minibus transportation market.
According to him, each carrier operates on assigned routes, so passengers are practically deprived of the opportunity to choose between different companies.
According to the deputy, the main reason that the tariff increase is unlikely to lead to noticeable changes for passengers is precisely the lack of competition and stringent requirements for the quality of transportation.
Recall that in the summer of 2026, the prices for accommodation in Odesa caused outrage among tourists. In particular, a week's stay at the NEMO hotel located on Lanzheron beach costs approximately 126 thousand UAH for a room with three beds and breakfast.