On-the-job action means free ride for Stockholm passengers

This weekend, bus passengers in Stockholm travelled for free as drivers refused to handle cash.

The drivers, members of the Kommunal union, decided to take industrial action after the robbery of a bus driver near Slussen. Passengers without a ticket or travel card were allowed onto buses free of charge. A new ticketing system has massively increased the amount of cash that drivers handle, increasing the risk of attacks.

This is the third cash stoppage in recent weeks, and is pushing the Swedish Work Environment Authority towards a complete block on cash handling by bus drivers in the new year, although they have opposed the previous industrial action.