Abstract
The governmental Fare Plan envisaged increases in public transport fares of 10% per annum. At the introduction of the Fare Plan the Minister of Transport estimated 5% less patronage in urban public transport travel. Government officials were more pessimistic, however. A study in Nijmegen shows that for the 20-39 years age group the share of public transport in shopping trips has decreased from 14% in 1982 to 7% in 1984. For the 40-59 year olds the percentage dropped from 28 to 19%. The first group turned to the bicycle, the second took to various modes. The effects of the 1984 fare increase and the introduction of smaller zones have not yet been investigated.