Tashkent Tightens Control Over Bus Fare Evasion

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.uz) — Tashkent has stepped up checks on passengers who fail to pay fares on city buses, Uzbekistan’s Transport Ministry press service said.

The ministry recalled that from 1 September 2026, a new fare payment procedure has been introduced on all city buses operating under the gross contract system. Passengers are now required to pay for their trip immediately upon boarding the bus.

Following the change, inspectors from the state institution “Monitoring and Control of Passenger Transportation in Tashkent City” have intensified inspection raids. The measures are aimed at improving passenger discipline and payment culture.

Statistics show an increase in the number of violations detected. In August, administrative reports were issued against 10,843 passengers who failed to pay their fares under Part 5 of Article 144 of the Code of Administrative Responsibility, which establishes liability for fare evasion.

That amounted to an average of about 350 such cases per day in August.

During the first eight days of September, the number of violations detected was significantly higher. As of 8 September, administrative reports under the same article had been issued against 4,696 passengers who had not paid their fares.

The daily average during this period reached 587 reports. The Transport Ministry said this was 237 cases per day, or nearly 68%, higher than the August average.

Thus, following the introduction of the new fare payment procedure, enforcement of fare payment requirements on city buses has been strengthened, resulting in a higher number of fare-evasion cases being detected.