The European Parliament discussed the proposal of gifting young Europeans a free Interrail pass on their 18th birthday during a debate in plenary on 4 October. MEPs overwhelmingly supported the proposal during the plenary. The idea is to promote a travel mode with low greenhouse gas emissions, while enabling young European to meet and get to know Europe.
Transport Commissioner Violeta Bulc called the proposal an “excellent idea”. However, she said there would many challenges so further analysis will be required. “The Commission will carefully assess the potential costs and funding sources for this initiative as well as its administrative feasibility,” she said. Bulc also suggested an alternative version of the scheme: “An attractive option might be to have a lottery open to all or specific categories of young Europeans with a significant number winning free tickets.”
Interrail is a pass allowing people to travel across Europe’s rail network freely. An InterRail pass cost ranges between €20 and €480 for a month-long pass.
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