The Ministry of Transport already has the legal and economic framework to extend the current discounts on train and bus transportation until 2026 (30 euros for those under 26 years of age). From the last Council of Ministers of the year, held this Tuesday, the Royal Decree-Law comes out that articulates aid to travelers, on this double route, which requires 1,371 million euros. “It is about guaranteeing cohesion and equality,” the new Government spokesperson, Elma Saiz, stated at a press conference. And the head of Transport, Óscar Puente, has added political charge to the announcements: “In December alone I have brought matters to the Council of Ministers for 3,008 million euros. I say this for those who live installed in the drama that one cannot govern with extended Budgets or with a Congress that is not a transmission belt.”
As planned, the new single pass for public railway services will go on sale on January 19 and will coexist with other subsidized travel tickets. Puente has explained that travelers will continue to have products available to them such as the 20 euro per month subscription to board Cercanías trains and regional tickets and Media Distancia train travel tickets will continue to be marketed. “It’s not magic, it’s your taxes,” the person responsible for transportation policy ironically said. “One of the first things that a right-wing government would eliminate would be this aid.”
Transport has the objective of adding new offers to the single pass, such as the metro and urban and interurban buses, but it must have the approval of autonomous communities and city councils. “This is only the first step,” the minister anticipated. The single pass will be used for the moment to use Renfe’s Cercanías and Media Distancia rail services, in addition to the state bus lines, unlimitedly. To do this, the traveler and, subsequently, the purchase can be made through the websites, applications, ticket offices, self-sales machines or any other channel enabled by the operators (Renfe and bus companies) that are members of the program. The key element to obtain tickets at zero cost is a unique locator that accompanies the pass and which must be entered and validated during the purchase process.
Puente has insisted that the single pass does not replace existing titles and bonuses, but is added to the rest of the discounts. Once the invasion of regional and local powers has been avoided, the signing of agreements with these administrations is sought to make this new travel ticket a comprehensive product, similar to what consumers have in Germany with the Deutschlandticket, which includes all public transport for 63 euros. In the German case, as in Spain, the high-speed train is left out because it is a commercial or non-subsidized service. “I encourage joining the single pass because we are convinced that the more integrated the public transport network is, the greater the benefits will be for citizens. There will be more simplicity, more savings and easier movement,” said the minister.
News with discount
The plan to extend the life of the bonuses that have been in place during this second half of 2025 was announced on the 15th by the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez. But along with the current discount scheme, in which collaboration between different administrations does occur, new advantages come for the consumer.
On the train there are two new instruments: a new quarterly pass, called Vía Pass, which is being reinforced with more trains, and the Cronos para Cercanías title, with discounts of 40% from the fifth trip onwards, paying with the bank card at the turnstile. Puente has acknowledged that the latter is already in force, “but it is very little known.”
In the Vía Pass, the discount that the user will enjoy is applied each time a ticket is purchased and will increase as trips are added. This gives priority to the recurring traveler without having to make a prior outlay. “We are talking about discounts ranging from 45% to 72%,” the head of Transport anticipated. In the Avant, a ten-trip voucher valid for 30 days is also launched with a 50% cut on the real price. These new rates for Renfe’s Avant services will replace the existing multi-trip tickets (plus 10, plus 10-45 and plus 30-50 cards).
For the millions of Cercanías users, the Cronos system applies a 40% discount from the fifth trip when paying with a bank card at the turnstiles. In Medium Distance services on the metric gauge network, discounts on round trips increase from 7% to 20%, matching those of the rest of the conventional network.
Óscar Puente has listed other lines of aid for traveling by rail. The subscription for ten trips on Cercanías, as well as the monthly passes, with unlimited trips, of 20 euros and ten euros for young people, remain throughout 2026. Travel on Cercanías will be free for children under 14 years of age. In Media Distancia and Avant services, free child travel and 40% discounts on monthly passes and ten-trip vouchers are also preserved. The 50% bonus has been extended to the general Avant ticket.
In his appearance after the Council of Ministers, Óscar Puente highlighted that Renfe has distributed more than 22 million free or discounted passes between Cercanías, Media Distancia and Avant, which amounts to 1.7 billion savings for train users.
Bus incentives
In state bus services, free bus services will continue for children up to 14 years old; The ten trip pass retains a 40% discount; and the nominative monthly pass, a 50% discount (70% for people up to 26 years old). In regional or local transport services, free children’s travel, 50% discounts for young people up to 26 years of age, and the 20% bonus on other subscriptions are extended in the same way. Among the announcements of the day, Transport is going to finance its part (20%) regardless of whether or not there is regional or local aid: “We leave it to your discretion without forcing anyone,” according to Óscar Puente.
In the extended framework of bonuses, specific aid for recurring travelers in the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands is also extended to all of 2026, with free public land transport, and those that affect Asturias and Cantabria, where Cercanías services are free until the metric gauge trains that CAF has in production arrive.
Effective January 1
The Royal Decree-Law that includes this entire policy to aid mobility in public transport must now pass through the Congress of Deputies within a period of 30 days to be validated. Despite this, the sales come into effect on January 1.
The success of the bonus program is measured in a notable increase in user volume. Between January and September of this year, an average of more than 420 million people per month have used public transport, which represents a jump of 23% compared to the same period in 2022 and exceeds the levels prior to the health crisis.
Minister Puente has spoken of the promotion of public transport as an essential public policy: “It is a tool of social cohesion, equal opportunities, territorial balance and also a key policy to advance the ecological transition.” And he has referred to free children as an “educational and loyalty instrument.”
By the end of the next fiscal year, the Government will have allocated more than 11,000 million euros to the promotion of public means of mobility since 2018 (7,800 million since September 2022), being a critical element of the social shield after the pandemic and the inflation crisis caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. “This aid represents a historic budgetary effort, sustained over time and with a direct impact on the daily lives of millions of people,” stated the minister. “Families have had to use 75% less of the income used for public transport than before these aid was enabled.”
