Gevorg Stepanyan, a member of the Mother Armenia faction in the Yerevan City Council, claimed on Facebook that Yerevan’s municipal budget suffered a 5 billion dram (approximately $12.5 million) loss over the past six months, attributing it to the policies of the Civil Contract Party and Mayor Tigran Avinyan.
“The damage caused by Civil Contract and personally Avinyan to the city’s budget amounted to 5 billion drams in six months,” he wrote.
According to Stepanyan, last year during the same period, the fare was 100 drams and operations were more efficient, with citizens paying honestly. However, under the so-called “transport reform,” the fare was raised to 150 drams despite public opposition, leading to a drop in revenue.
“In January–June 2025, transport fare collection fell by 5 billion drams due to a justified boycott by citizens,” he stated.
He warned that the boycott against overpriced and unreformed public transport would continue. “Those who deceived the public with the slogan ‘Tell us, and we’ll do it’ have received yet another slap.”
Stepanyan also criticized the deployment of fare inspectors, claiming it would backfire: “Introducing penalty-wielding ‘monitors’ into transport will only have the opposite effect…”
The National Assembly has passed a draft law introducing administrative liability for citizens using public transport without paying. Non-paying and non-identifying passengers may face administrative detention.
