Fomento increases transport discount credit to 1,250,000 euros

The Regional Ministry of Public Works (Consejería de Fomento) of the Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha has increased to 1,250,000 euros the credit intended to compensate concessionary companies for the discounts applied to transport passes and multi-trip tickets during 2026. This is done through Order 158/2026, of October 29, published in the Official Gazette of Castilla-La Mancha (Diario Oficial de Castilla-La Mancha) number 215, of November 10, 2026, with reference 2026/7956 (page 39656). The regulation enters into force on the day of its publication.

The framework: state aid applied in the region

The modification affects Article 2 of Order 81/2026, of May 27, which establishes the discounts on the price of transport passes and multi-trip tickets—excluding round-trip tickets—for regular intercity collective road passenger transport services, for the period between January 1 and December 31, 2026. That order was published in the Official Gazette of Castilla-La Mancha number 109, of June 11, 2026.

Its objective was to transfer the aid system approved by Royal Decree-Law 17/2025, of December 23, on measures to promote the use of public transport, to the regional level. That text establishes in its Chapter III a regime of direct aid, in effect from January 1 to December 31, 2026, to financially support autonomous communities and local entities that provide urban or intercity collective land transport services.

The new order is issued under Law 16/1987, of July 30, on the Regulation of Land Transport; Law 14/2005, of December 29, on the Regulation of Road Passenger Transport in Castilla-La Mancha; Article 23.2.c) of Law 11/2003, of September 25, of the Government and the Consultative Council; and Decree 31/2025, of April 29, on the structure and competencies of the Regional Ministry of Public Works.

What changes and where the money comes from

The sole article of Order 158/2026 rewrites Article 2 of the previous regulation, dedicated to the budget item for compensation. The text reads as follows:

• The amount allocated for discounts is paid from budget item 17040000G/513C/47530.
• That amount totals 1,250,000 euros.
• The coverage extends to the remainder of the 2026 fiscal year, i.e., until December 31.

The order was signed in Toledo on October 29, 2026, by the Regional Minister of Public Works, Ignacio Hernando Serrano.

The reason: more passes used than expected

The preamble explains that, once the discounts were applied during the months of January to May, an increase in their use was observed, necessitating the expansion of the initially planned credit. The goal is to be able to meet the compensations to the concessionaires for the remainder of the fiscal year.

The service catalog where the reductions are applied is established by Annex I of Order 81/2026, which was updated by the Resolution of 06/10/2026, from the General Directorate of Transport and Mobility, published in the Official Gazette of Castilla-La Mancha number 198, of October 15, 2026 (reference 2026/7319), and signed by the general director Lucía Balmaseda Solera. That annex includes nearly forty concessions, among them:

• VCM-037 Ciudad Real-Puertollano, by Autómnibus Interurbanos, S.A. (AISA).
• VCM-066 Talavera de la Reina-Toledo, by Castromil, S.A.U..
• VCM-036 Albacete-Villarrobledo, by Autocares Francisco Gómez e Hijos, S.L..
• VCM-603 Albacete-Toledo (Ciudad Directo), by Golden Bus, SL.

The same annex identifies three concessions with a rural voucher: VCM-076 (Sisante-La Amarcha-Tarancón-Villar de Cañas-Minglanilla), VCM-584 (Hellín-Minas de Hellín-Cancarix) and VCM-623 (Fuentes de la Alcarria-Romancos-Guadalajara).

Impact for travelers and companies

The extension of the credit ensures that the concessionaires receive the compensations committed for the discounts already applied to intercity transport users, from urban access routes to the capitals to inter-provincial journeys. The reinforcement arrives with less than two months remaining until the close of the fiscal year and consolidates a bonus scheme that originated linked to state funds and is now scaled according to the actual use of the service.

Source: Official Gazette of Castilla-La Mancha, no. 215, November 10, 2026, section III, page 39656 (official reference: 2026/7956).