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A decision to increase public transport fares in Oral is set to be made, but the companies operating the buses claim the move is not for their benefit. Instead, they allege it's a strategy by the city administration to recoup its outstanding subsidy debt.

The Oral City Maslikhat is scheduled to vote on June 5th on a proposal to raise fares to 200 tenge for cash payments and 150 tenge for non-cash transactions. Traditionally, the city administration justifies fare hikes by citing increased operational costs for transport companies, warning of potential service disruptions if these costs become unmanageable.

Challenging the Official Narrative

However, transport company leaders have informed the editorial office of "Ural Week" that the fare increase is not their initiative. They contend that the administration is using this measure to generate funds to settle its accumulated subsidy arrears. Reports indicate a significant deficit of 11 billion tenge in the city budget.

Financial Health of Transport Companies

An examination of financial data for six major transport companies—JSC "Oralavtotrans", JSC "ZKAP", JSC "UralTechService", JSC "Batys Dilizhans", JSC "Akzholavto", and JSC "Alyy Parus"—revealed a substantial increase in turnover over the past three years. Five of these companies are reportedly operating profitably.

JSC "ZKAP" leads in profitability, with an estimated profit of 882.5 million tenge for 2025. Following closely are JSC "Oralavtotrans" with 412 million tenge, JSC "Batys Dilizhans" with 405 million tenge, and JSC "Alyy Parus" with 206 million tenge.

Subsidy Debt and Administration's Actions

Company heads acknowledged that their financial situations improved after they began receiving subsidies from the budget. These subsidies are intended to cover the difference between the actual service cost and the fare paid by passengers. Over the last four years, the administration has disbursed approximately 22 billion tenge in subsidies.

However, starting last year, the city administration began accumulating subsidy debt due to budget shortfalls. Faced with difficulties in repaying these debts, authorities have opted to increase the burden on citizens, according to information from company leaders.

The Commission Controversy

Despite the city's financial challenges, the administration's dealings with "Smart Qala Oral" LLP, the non-cash payment operator, have raised eyebrows. An audit report indicated that late last year, City Mayor Murat Baimenov signed a decree increasing the company's transaction commission from 9% to 12%. According to Deputy Mayor Azamat Khalelov, the administration is even considering raising this commission to 15%.

Given that passenger transaction volume reaches 2.6 billion tenge per quarter, a 9% commission would yield approximately 40 million tenge in monthly revenue for the company. The potential revenue increase with the higher commission rate is significant.

Adding to the scrutiny, the co-owner of "Smart Qala Oral" LLP is Dias Dzhanibekov, who previously headed the entrepreneurship department for a period. This connection has led to questions about the timing and nature of the commission increase.

In 2025, "Smart Qala Oral" LLP is projected to earn around 100 million tenge in profit, according to tax committee data.

Transport Operators' Reluctant Agreement

Kairat Iskakov, director of "Oralavtotrans" company, stated that transport operators reluctantly agreed to the administration's proposal to increase the commission. He explained that they were informed of an increase in services provided by "Smart Qala Oral" LLP, including doubling the number of controllers from 20 to 40. This expansion, he noted, would increase their operational costs.

"Consider the difference between paying 9 tenge or 12 tenge out of 100 tenge. It's a significant difference. One bus carries approximately 800 passengers per day – calculate that," Iskakov urged.

It remains to be seen whether deputies will pose challenging questions to the city mayor during tomorrow's Maslikhat session.