STUDY: Australia has the second most expensive public transport in the world

Large group of people traveling by bus.

For travellers seeking to save money or cut their carbon footprint, public transport is usually a given.

While it’s much cheaper than hiring a car or catching a cab, the cost of jumping on the local bus or metro can quickly stack up. Particularly in major capital cities.

Globehunters has crunched the numbers and looked at the prices of monthly transport passes around the world to reveal which countries and cities are the most expensive to give your clients a benchmark idea of how much they should set aside for public transport on their next trip.

The results show London ranks as the most expensive city in the world for a monthly transport pass, with an average cost of around $186.

Unsurprisingly, Sydney came in second with the average monthly price of $151 and Dublin come in third place at $143.32.

London is known as having one of the most extensive transport networks in the world, with the Underground alone carrying over a billion passengers each year.

5 Most Expensive Cities

  1. London, United Kingdom – $186.00
  2. Sydney, Australia – $151.45
  3. Dublin, Ireland – $143.32
  4. New York City, NY, United States – $119.88
  5. Toronto, Canada – $111.59

Each of the top five cheapest cities for public transport were found in Asia, with a monthly pass for Mumbai costing the equivalent of just $4.34.

Destinations in Asia, particularly those in the Southeast, such as Vietnam and Indonesia, are becoming increasingly popular and are generally known as being very affordable for Aussie travellers.

5 Cheapest Cities

  1. Mumbai, India – $4.34
  2. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam – $6.40
  3. Jaipur, India – $7.24
  4. Hanoi, Vietnam – $8.54
  5. Jakarta, Indonesia – $11.59

The top five most expensive countries on average were all those which generally have a high cost of living. Ireland takes the top spot with a monthly cost of $120, followed by Australia (yikes) at $104.52, nearly $50 cheaper than our most expensive city.

However, these average figures only relate to cities in the countries and public transport may be cheaper in rural areas.

5 Most Expensive Countries

  1. Ireland – $ 120.48
  2. Australia – $104.52
  3. New Zealand – $100.07
  4. Iceland – $96.83
  5. Japan – $91.75

Again, we see that the cheaper countries for public transport are generally found in Asia, such as Pakistan, where an average monthly pass comes to just $5.17! If only Sydney would take note.

5 Cheapest Countries 

  1. Pakistan – $5.17
  2. Sri Lanka – $5.63
  3. Vietnam – $7.03
  4. Moldova – $7.82
  5. Nepal – $8.12

Click here to see the full list.

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