A new free bus route, 902, will be launched on a trial basis between Bratislava and several Austrian towns near the Slovak border.
The service will connect Bratislava’s Petržalka district with the Austrian municipalities of Kittsee, Berg, Edelstal and Prellenkirchen. Bratislava Integrated Transport System (BID) and carrier Arriva Mobility Solutions have signed an agreement for the trial operation of the route. The launch is tentatively scheduled for 1 September 2026, although the exact date will depend on the necessary license being issued.
The trial period will last three months, and passengers will be able to use the service free of charge throughout this period.
The exact route has not yet been finalized. The agreement provides for two possible options. The choice will depend on whether the authorities can approve temporary bus traffic across the state border between Kopčianska Street in Bratislava and Pressburger Straße in Austria.
If the bus is allowed to cross the border at this point, the route will start on Pajštúnska Street in Petržalka. Otherwise, the bus will travel via the Berg border crossing and depart from the transport interchange on Farského Street.
The service is expected to use a low-floor Iveco Crossway LE 12M bus. The trial operation is being organized as part of the European NUTSHELL@CE project, funded through the Interreg Central Europe programme.
The carrier will be paid €2.063 per kilometre for operating the service. A maximum of 34,033 kilometres is planned over the three-month trial period. If the experiment proves successful, the new route could become an additional public transport option for residents of the border regions.
