Minibus drivers in Bishkek ask to increase the fare to 20 soms during the pandemic. The Chairman of the Bus Alliance Association, Grigory Nikolaidi, told 24.kg news agency.

According to the current algorithm for carriers, minibus load should not exceed 70-80 percent of the number of seats.

«With the existing fare, it does not even pay back expenses. Therefore, we ask to temporarily increase the fare for the duration of the emergency situation. Passengers are ready to pay 20 soms for seats. Companies will not close. People need to get to work somehow. Public transport and taxis will not work on weekends, how will they get to workplaces? If the fare is increased, the driver will not load the minibus, he will take a new passenger, if someone gets off only. This will minimize contacts,» he said.

Grigory Nikolaidi added that his proposal was submitted to the Epidemiological Commission, the Republican Emergency Response Center, voiced at a meeting at the Ministry of Transport.