SBB improves its half-fare More

In December 2023, the SwissPass Alliance launched the half-fare Plus, a credit subscription. This successful product will experience a decisive change.

The name “Half Fare Plus” gives the impression that it is an extended version of the famous Half Fare subscription. This is also what was originally planned, since the half-fare was to be directly integrated into the half-fare Plus offer. Due to technical challenges, this plan was scrapped before launch last December. The name, however, stuck.

Despite its name which could mislead some, the subscription has had a remarkable start. As indicated by the SwissPass Alliance at the request of the Daily Gazette, the offering was sold for over 170,000 times as of November 5, 2024. For comparison, the classic half-price subscription was used by around 3.3 million people at the end of October, while 431,000 AGs were in circulation on the same date.

The Half Fare Plus concept is based on the payment of a credit, with customers receiving a bonus depending on the amount. For example, a payment of 800 francs entitles you to a credit of 1000 francs and therefore to a bonus of 200 francs, a payment of 1500 francs to a credit of 2000 francs and a payment of 2100 francs to a credit of 3000 francs. For people under 25, the bonuses are even significantly higher. The credits are valid for one year and at the end of the one-year period, any remaining credit is reimbursed up to the amount paid.

Half-Fare Plus models.Image: Alliance swisspass

The renewal is simplified

A frequent criticism from users concerned the renewal of the Half Fare Plus. Until now, the subscription could only be renewed if the balance fell below 30 francs. The credit could also only be reduced to zero if, by chance, the price of the desired ticket exactly matched the remaining credit. The remaining amount had to be paid in the form of a coupon, which caused frustration among some customers.

Thus, a passenger who had purchased the Plus 3000 half-fare recently complained on the CFF platform that he had to specially book a journey worth more than 6 and less than 35 francs for his credit to pass. below the “magic” limit of 30 francs. Otherwise, he would not be able to purchase a new subscription.

As Michaela Ruoss, spokesperson for the SwissPass Alliance, explains to watson, it is now possible to load a new amount on your half-fare Plus as soon as you have fully used the credit of the current package or you are in the bonus phase. The newly acquired Half-Fare Plus package can then be automatically used from the day after reloading and is again valid for one year. But before drawing on the new credit, the remaining bonus from the “old” package is used.

An example: If you still have a budget of 25 francs on your old Plus half-fare, but you want to buy a 50 franc ticket, the entire 25 francs from the old subscription will now be used , then the credit for the new subscription will be directly started. So the complicated payment of the remaining amount is no longer necessary.

As the CFF communicated by email, the automatic extension of subscriptions is canceled. Instead, users will be free to extend their credit themselves as needed. According to Alliance SwissPass, a large proportion of customers use up the credit within a few months anyway.

The latest news on SBB in Switzerland

The canton of Vaud has joined the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Through this membership, it intends to position itself as a leading player in the fight for the preservation of biodiversity in Switzerland.

Vaud joins the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Member status will allow the canton to “strengthen its actions through access to proven know-how in nature protection offered by this international network, as well as the sharing of scientific knowledge and good practices, particularly at a regional level,” the cantonal authorities said Monday in a press release.