Huge protest on the horizon: Budapest public transport can halt on the busiest day of the summer
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According to a joint initiative by Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony, Ferencváros (9th district) Mayor Krisztina Baranyi, and Dávid Vitézy, councillor of the Podmaniczky Movement and former mayoral candidate, the well-organised Budapest public transport system will come to a halt on the busiest day of summer as a demonstration against the Hungarian government’s “anti-Budapest policies”.
20 August can become the new 24 December in Budapest
Based on Index, the joint initiative would introduce 24 December-style public transport on 20 August, the National Day of Hungary, when the country celebrates the foundation of the state. The day is one of the busiest for public transport due to multiple celebrations, summer programmes and other events.
This change would mean that Budapesters (and tourists) could only use a minimum service in the afternoon and evening. Furthermore, Vitézy and Baranyi want Budapest to refuse paying its bills to state-owned MVM Ltd and Hungary’s oil and gas giant MOL, provided the capital’s solvency becomes endangered.
In the 2025 budget, Budapest planned to pay only HUF 39 billion (EUR 97 million) as a solidarity contribution to the Hungarian state, despite the National Economy Ministry setting a much higher amount of HUF 89 billion (EUR 222 million). The Budapest leadership said the state gave only HUF 39 billion to Budapest, which contradicts Hungary’s fundamental law that a local government should not be a net contributor to the state budget.
Billboard campaign may come, Budapest public transport halts
The Hungarian top court (Kúria) ruled that the city’s annual budget is irregular. As a result, the Hungarian State Treasury withdrew billions of forints from its account, giving it back only after the Budapest Municipal Court granted urgent protection. However, that protection lasts only until August. The city’s budget needs quick modifications, but the proposal was voted down in two committees, and today’s Municipal Assembly lacked a quorum.
