TOKS Travel Rules

Passenger, baggage, ticket and other travel rules. Excerpt

I. GENERAL

1. The Rules for the Carriage of Passengers and Luggage (hereinafter – the Rules) establish the procedure for carrying passengers by bus on regular, special and chartered services on local (urban and suburban) and long-distance routes, the particulars of passenger tickets (hereinafter – ticket), the procedure for their sale and return, the maximum size and weight of luggage, the procedure for carrying luggage, the list of items prohibited from being carried and stored, the procedure for storing and disposing of found items, and the procedure for installing and maintaining stops intended for serving passengers in urban and rural settlements and on roads.

2. The Rules are binding on municipal institutions, natural persons and legal entities.

3. The terms used in the Rules are understood as defined in the Law on the Fundamentals of Transport Activity of the Republic of Lithuania, the Road Transport Code of the Republic of Lithuania (hereinafter – the Code) and the Law on Tourism of the Republic of Lithuania.

II. TICKET PARTICULARS, SALE AND RETURN, LUGGAGE RECEIPTS

4. On regular services, carriers must apply the established fares, and the crew must sell tickets and luggage receipts. On local (urban) routes and local (suburban) routes, where the local (suburban) route uses a ticketing system integrated into the common ticketing system of local (urban) routes, the municipal institution may decide that the crew is not required to sell tickets and luggage receipts, provided that ticket sales are ensured through other ticket distribution channels. During a single trip, the same fare applies to all passengers on long-distance and local (suburban) routes, except where the local (suburban) route uses a ticketing system integrated into the common ticketing system of local (urban) routes, in which case pricing is based on the carrier’s established and publicly announced price list for the same distance travelled. Discounts established by the Law on Transport Concessions of the Republic of Lithuania apply to the full ticket price or to the ticket price obtained after other discounts have been applied.

5. It is prohibited to sell two or more tickets with a discount established by the Law on Transport Concessions instead of one ticket, to print tickets with a discount established by the Law on Transport Concessions on a cash register when the passengers are not present, or to print the details of two or more tickets with a discount established by the Law on Transport Concessions on a single ticket.

6. A passenger must keep the ticket (luggage receipt) until the end of the journey and present it if requested by the crew or by a person carrying out inspection or supervision. Where an electronic ticket (luggage receipt) is used, a digital or physical copy of the electronic ticket must be presented. The means of identifying electronic tickets (luggage receipts) for local (urban and suburban) routes are established by municipal institutions or the bodies authorised by them. On local (urban and suburban) routes, municipal institutions or the bodies authorised by them may establish a different procedure for purchasing tickets and presenting them for inspection.

7. The crew must record tickets (luggage receipts) sold on buses in a ticket inspection sheet. The ticket inspection sheet may be left unfilled if the ticket sales equipment system is technically capable of printing or visually displaying on a screen information about the tickets sold by the crew. The ticket inspection sheet is not used on local (urban) routes, or where a cash register is used to sell tickets on local (suburban) and long-distance routes. Ticket inspection sheets are not used on local (urban) routes or on local (suburban) routes integrated into the common ticketing system of local (urban) routes.

8. Single-journey tickets (luggage receipts) for local (suburban) and long-distance regular routes must state: the carrier’s name and code, the route number and name assigned by the competent authority, the trip number, the departure and destination bus stations (stops), the departure date, the departure time, the ticket (luggage receipt) price, the percentage of the discount established by the Law on Transport Concessions or by municipalities, where applicable, the seat (except for luggage receipts and single-journey tickets for local (suburban) regular routes) and the departure bay number (if the ticket is sold at the bus station ticket office). Period tickets for local (suburban) and long-distance regular routes must state: the carrier’s name, the departure and destination bus stations (stops), the ticket (luggage receipt) price and the ticket validity period; and period personalised tickets for local (suburban) and long-distance regular routes must also state the percentage of the discount established by the Law on Transport Concessions or by municipalities. On buses, carriers must use cash registers (except in cases provided for by legislation where cash registers are not required), as provided for in the Procedure for the Installation and Use of Cash Registers, approved by Resolution No. 1283 of the Government of the Republic of Lithuania of 13 August 2002 “On the Approval of the Procedure for the Installation and Use of Cash Registers”, which must print on tickets (luggage receipts): the carrier’s name and code, the route number and name assigned by the competent authority, the trip number, the date, time and price of sale of the ticket (luggage receipt), the departure and destination bus stations (stops), and the percentage of the discount established by the Law on Transport Concessions, where applicable. A report of tickets sold (luggage carried) on the route must also be printed and kept together with the ticket inspection sheet, if an inspection sheet is filled in. If a local (suburban) route is integrated into the common ticketing system of local (urban) routes, the requirements for the tickets (luggage receipts) of such routes are the same as the requirements for tickets (luggage receipts) of local (urban) routes.

9. When selling single-journey electronic tickets (luggage receipts) for travel and/or luggage carriage on local (urban) routes, the following data must be stored in the digital database: the name of the carrier or municipality, the fare (luggage carriage price) and the percentage of the discount established by the Law on Transport Concessions, where applicable. When selling period electronic tickets for travel on local (urban) routes, the following data must be stored in the digital database: the name of the carrier or municipality, the fare and the ticket validity period. When selling period (personalised) electronic tickets for travel on local (urban) routes, the following data must be stored in the digital database: the name of the carrier or municipality, the fare, the ticket validity period and the percentage of the discount established by the Law on Transport Concessions.

10. When selling electronic tickets (luggage receipts) for travel and/or luggage carriage on local (suburban) and long-distance regular routes, the digital database must store the data that, in accordance with point 8 of the Rules, must be indicated on the tickets (luggage receipts) sold. If a local (suburban) route is integrated into the common ticketing system of local (urban) routes, the requirements for the data stored in the digital database are the same as the requirements for the data stored in the digital database on sales of tickets for local (urban) routes.

11. A ticket (luggage receipt) for a local (suburban) or long-distance regular route is valid only on the day and for the trip for which it was sold. If a local (suburban) route is integrated into the common ticketing system of local (urban) routes, the validity of such tickets (luggage receipts) is determined by municipal institutions or the bodies authorised by them.

12. For all trips on long-distance regular routes on the same day, tickets (luggage receipts) are sold at bus station ticket offices and other points of sale from the moment they open, and sales stop 10 minutes before departure according to the traffic timetable. Tickets are sold to passengers without limiting their number, provided the capacity limits stated in the bus’s technical data are not exceeded. Only one luggage receipt may be sold to a passenger in advance. Luggage receipts for carrying a second or larger piece of luggage than the dimensions specified in point 36 of the Rules are sold only on buses, if there is free space in the luggage compartment after boarding has been completed.

13. The crew must sell tickets (luggage receipts) to passengers immediately after they board the bus. It is prohibited to leave the territory of bus stations and stops before tickets (luggage receipts) have been sold to all passengers on the bus and the travel documents have been completed in the established manner. These provisions do not apply in the case provided for in point 4 of the Rules, where the crew does not sell tickets. If the crews do not have enough time to sell tickets (luggage receipts) to all passengers who have boarded the bus, the carrier may apply to the authority that issued the permit to carry passengers on the regular route to adjust the traffic timetable.

14. Before the bus departs, a passenger has the right to return a ticket and luggage receipt for a local (suburban) or long-distance regular route (to cancel the electronic ticket (luggage receipt)) and to receive a full refund of the money paid for them when the trip is cancelled or the bus is delayed in departing by more than 15 minutes, unless Regulation (EU) No 181/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 February 2011 concerning the rights of passengers in bus and coach transport and amending Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 provides otherwise.

15. When a passenger returns a single-journey ticket and/or luggage receipt (cancels an electronic ticket (luggage receipt)) purchased for a trip on a local (suburban) or long-distance route, the following is refunded:

15.1. if the request is made no later than two hours before departure according to the traffic timetable – the full price of the ticket (luggage receipt), except where otherwise agreed when the electronic ticket (luggage receipt) was purchased;

15.2. if the request is made less than two hours but not less than 10 minutes before departure according to the traffic timetable – not less than 85 percent of the price of the ticket (luggage receipt), except where otherwise agreed when the electronic ticket (luggage receipt) was purchased.

16. When a passenger returns a period or personalised period ticket for a local (suburban) route, or a period ticket for a long-distance regular route (cancels a period or personalised period electronic ticket) before its validity period has expired, the amount to be refunded to the passenger is calculated using the following formula:

S = (K : T x L) x 0.75,

where:

S – the amount to be refunded;

K – the purchase price of the ticket;

T – the validity period of the ticket (calculated in days);

L – the unused part of the ticket’s validity period (calculated in days).

17. Once a bus travelling on a local (suburban) or long-distance regular route has departed on its trip, money for unused tickets (luggage receipts) is not refunded, except in cases of illness or accidents, if the passenger presents to the carrier documents confirming this and the unused (non-activated) ticket (luggage receipt). In that case, the passenger is refunded not less than 75 percent of the price of the ticket (luggage receipt).

18. Where, due to an impassable road, severe weather conditions, a bus breakdown or other reasons, it is not possible to carry a passenger travelling on a local (suburban) or long-distance regular route, or luggage, to the destination bus station (stop), the passenger is refunded the amount paid for the journey and luggage carriage from the place where the journey was interrupted to the destination bus station (stop), as well as for the part of the journey already completed, if under the passenger’s original travel plan the journey no longer makes sense and the final destination bus station (stop) indicated on the ticket has not been reached. If the bus and the passenger return to the departure bus station (stop) for the above reasons, the passenger is refunded all money paid for the journey and luggage carriage.

19. A passenger may return valid, unused (non-activated) single-journey and period tickets and luggage receipts for local (urban) routes (cancel the electronic ticket) (luggage receipt) within the ticket or luggage receipt return period set by the municipal institution, but no later than the start of their validity. If a local (suburban) route is integrated into the common ticketing system of local (urban) routes, the provisions of this point apply to the return of tickets (luggage receipts) and the provisions of points 14–18 do not apply.

20. In the cases provided for in points 14–18 and point 38 of the Rules (except for compensation), the money is refunded to the passenger at the place where the ticket (luggage receipt) was sold, or the carrier refunds the money. In the case provided for in point 19 of the Rules, the money must be refunded by the municipality or the institution authorised by it, or by the carrier. The money is refunded no later than within 14 calendar days of the request and the presentation of the ticket (luggage receipt) or of the day of cancellation of the electronic ticket. Amounts paid for tickets and luggage receipts are refunded to passengers in cash, except where the passenger agrees that the amount paid be reimbursed in another way.

III. TICKET INSPECTION

21. A passenger must hold a valid ticket, keep it until the end of the journey and present it to the crew, an inspector or another person authorised by the carrier upon request.

22. After paying for a bus journey, a passenger must immediately take the ticket. Merely handing money to a crew member without receiving a ticket is not sufficient confirmation of payment for the journey. If a ticket is not issued, the passenger must immediately demand it and report this by phone on +370 612 66166 or by email at pranesk@toks.lt.

23. If, during an inspection, a passenger does not present a valid ticket, the passenger must immediately purchase an inspection ticket.

24. The price of an inspection ticket is equal to 200 percent of the standard ticket price applicable to the passenger’s journey from the boarding point to the destination. If the passenger cannot confirm the boarding point, the price of the inspection ticket is calculated from the starting point of the route.

25. When an inspection ticket is purchased, the passenger is issued a document confirming payment. The inspection ticket entitles the passenger to continue the journey to the destination indicated on it.

26. A passenger who does not immediately purchase an inspection ticket during an inspection is put off the bus at the nearest safe stop on the route before the journey ends.

27. Travelling without a ticket may result in administrative liability under Article 446 of the Code of Administrative Offences of the Republic of Lithuania. Data on intentional complicity in avoiding payment by fraud may be passed to law enforcement authorities and assessed under Articles 24 and 182 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Lithuania.

IV. CARRIAGE OF PASSENGERS

28. Passengers board and alight at bus stations and stops specified in the traffic timetables. Stopping at these bus stations and stops is mandatory. At terminal and intermediate bus stations, passengers alight at the arrival bay.

29. Persons with disabilities together with wheelchairs intended for persons with disabilities, as well as children together with prams, must be carried on buses, except where the wheelchair intended for a person with a disability or the pram does not fit into the bus saloon or luggage compartment. No charge is made for carrying a wheelchair intended for a person with a disability or a child’s pram.

30. A person with a disability has the right to travel on buses with an assistance dog only if they hold a document (or a copy of it) confirming the assistance dog’s status. An assistance dog trainer also has the right to travel on buses with a future assistance dog (hereinafter – assistance dog (trainee)) during the dog’s practical training, only if they hold a document (or a copy of it) confirming the status of the assistance dog (trainee). An assistance dog or assistance dog (trainee) is carried free of charge and must not occupy a seat.

31. Passengers must be informed of their duty to take care of their own safety: if there are free seats, to sit down and fasten the seat belt, if one is fitted, and when standing, to hold on to the handrails.

32. When carrying passengers on regular trips on long-distance routes, the crew must ask passengers who have bought tickets that do not specify seats to give up their seats to persons with disabilities, if those seats are located in a place more convenient for boarding and alighting from the bus and if there is a free seat for the passenger who gave up their seat.

33. It is recommended that the difference between the temperature inside the saloon and the outside temperature of a bus carrying passengers on local (urban) regular routes should not exceed 6–8 °C. The recommended saloon temperature of a bus carrying passengers on local (suburban) regular routes is 5 to 15 °C in winter and 18 to 28 °C in summer.

34. The driver must stop as close as possible to the pavement or roadside so that it is more convenient for passengers to board or alight from the vehicle. If a person with a disability is waiting at a public transport stop in a wheelchair intended for persons with disabilities, the driver or another crew member must ensure that this passenger can get on the bus by using the assistive equipment installed in the vehicle: a ramp, platform, lift or other device.

V. CARRIAGE OF LUGGAGE

35. In the bus saloon, each passenger has the right to carry free of charge one item of hand luggage with dimensions not exceeding 60 x 40 x 20 cm or with a total sum of dimensions not exceeding 120 cm. Pupils and students also have the right to carry free of charge one item of hand luggage larger than that specified in this point, if it is necessary for their schooling or studies. Scooters are carried as hand luggage if they meet the dimensions specified in this point and are clean.

36. In the bus luggage compartment, one item of luggage with dimensions not exceeding 100 x 50 x 30 cm or with a total sum of dimensions not exceeding 180 cm may be carried for a fee. A passenger may carry a second item of luggage, or one larger than these dimensions, only if there is free space in the luggage compartment after boarding has been completed.

37. Luggage is received into the bus luggage compartment and handed out at the destination by the crew.

38. The fee for carrying each item of luggage is charged when the luggage receipt is sold.

39. Luggage accepted for carriage or storage must be properly packed, except for luggage that does not need to be packed.

40. It is prohibited to carry on buses flammable, explosive, foul-smelling or pungent substances, sharp or cutting objects, weapons, ammunition, or items that may stain the bus upholstery or passengers’ clothing, and on buses carrying passengers on long-distance routes – animals without a carrier. The procedure for carrying animals on local (urban and suburban) routes is established by the executive institutions of municipalities.

41. Bicycles may be carried inside or outside the bus in specially equipped and marked places, or in the bus luggage compartment as luggage.

VI. FOUND ITEMS

42. Items found in the saloons of buses on local (urban and suburban) and long-distance routes are handed over by the crew to a place designated by the carrier.

43. A crew member who has found items, or to whom a passenger has handed items left behind, draws up a report describing these items in detail and stating the circumstances in which they were found. The report is handed over to the police, and the found items are stored for 6 months. If the carrier itself is unable or unwilling to store the found items, the report is handed over to the police together with the found items. Found documents, weapons and ammunition are handed over to the police immediately.

44. If found items may spoil or lose part of their value due to prolonged storage, measures must be taken, 24 hours after the item is handed over, to sell the item where possible, and to keep the money received for it for the person who lost the item or otherwise lost possession of it. If it is not possible to sell the item, it is destroyed.

45. If the person who lost the item is not identified within 6 months, the found item passes free of charge into the ownership of the carrier that stored the found item, on condition that the carrier agrees to compensate the costs of keeping the found item and other costs related to it, if it was not the carrier that stored the find. If the carrier that found the item does not agree to compensate such costs, the find is transferred free of charge to State ownership, and the costs incurred by this carrier in connection with the find are reimbursed. If the person who lost an item that was sold as perishable is not identified within 6 months of the day the item was found, the money received for the item sold passes into the ownership of the carrier that found it, after deducting the amount spent on keeping and selling the find and announcing the find.

46. Found items are returned to the owner, but beforehand the owner must compensate the costs of keeping the item and other reasonable costs related to the find. If the owner of a found item is identified after the item has already been sold, the owner is returned the money received for the item, after deducting the amount spent on keeping and selling the find and announcing the find.

VII. RULES FOR CARRYING ANIMALS ON INTERCITY BUSES

47. On intercity buses, it is prohibited to carry animals without a transport carrier, except for guide dogs with documents (Rules for the Carriage of Passengers and Luggage by Road Transport, Article X, point 70).

48. The owner of the pet or the person travelling with it must provide a transport carrier and, where applicable, a muzzle. The owner is also responsible for the pet’s hygiene and for any damage or inconvenience caused by the pet to other passengers.

49. A transport carrier (with a sum of dimensions of up to 120 cm) may be of various types – a plastic box, a leather or wicker bag, etc. It is important that the animal is carried safely and cannot escape. The carrier must be:

– closed;
– fitted with openings for breathing.

50. A pet is carried free of charge on intercity buses if it does not occupy a separate seat. If the pet occupies an additional seat, a fee of 50%* of the standard ticket price applies.

51. A person with a disability has the right to travel on buses with an assistance dog only if they hold the following documents:

– a document (or a copy of it) confirming the assistance dog’s status;
– documents confirming the dog’s state of health and vaccination records;
– the animal’s passport.

An assistance dog trainer also has the right to travel on buses with a future assistance dog (trainee) during the dog’s practical training, only if they hold a document (or a copy of it) confirming the status of the assistance dog (trainee). An assistance dog or assistance dog (trainee) is carried free of charge and must not occupy a separate seat.

VIII. FINAL PROVISIONS

52. The carrier reserves the right to refuse to board a passenger with an animal if at least one requirement established in these rules has not been met.