The Košice transit company was founded in 1891 by Stefan Popper, who built the first track for a horse-drawn tramway. The company had the Magyar name Kasai közuti vast - KKK. In 1914, all tram tracks were electrified and the transit company was renamed as Sakai villa mos közúti vast. The tram system was destroyed in World War I and again in World War II. In 1945, at the end of hostilities, the system was rebuilt again. Nowadays, the publictransport company is called Dopravný podnik mesta Košice.
System
The Košice public transit system includes trams, buses, and trolleybuses. There are 15 tram lines, with a total length of 177 km, 41 bus routes with a total length of 743.1 km, and two trolleybus routes with a total length of 25.1 km. The system extends from the city center to industrial areas and outlying villages near the city.
Fares
The fare has changed over the years, costing 6 SKK for students and children less than 15 years of age, and 12 SKK for people 15 years and older as of 2008. Slovakia adopted the euro in 2009. In 2010, the tickets cost 0,25 € for students, and children less than 15 years of age, and 0,55 € for people 15 years and older. In 2019, a strike caused tickets to become more expensive. As of 2020, tickets cost 0.90 € for adults 15 to 62 years of age, and 0.45 € for children and adults over 62 years of age. All travellers must have a valid travel ticket. Passengers older than 70 years, handicapped people, and members of parliament travel for free. Tickets are single-use and time-limited to a particular day, week, or month, though students have concessions to this requirement. Contactless smart cards issued by most Slovak public transport companies are accepted. Passengers using them can obtain tickets at lowered prices upon boarding in card validators. Cards are also the only way of obtaining season tickets, like for one, three, and six months. Cards, which are not time-limited, are available to employees. Tickets can also be bought using SMS for 1.10 €.
Vehicles
Trams
In use
T6A5 : 29 are still in use, one was retired after crashing into a truck in 2009. Injuries were only caused to people, and the tram was badly damaged in front.
KT8D5 : 18 are still in use, 21 were sold off. The KT8D5R.N2 trams are a variant of this tram with a low-floor middle carriage, and were built between 2003 and 2009. Eight are still in use.
Pragoimex Vario LFR.S : only one was bought.
Retired
T3SUCS : one is still used by DPMK. It is a technical tram, and many were retired or sent to other cities. The last remaining tram in Košice no longer takes passengers.
Buses
In use
SOR NB 18 City: the number of these buses still in use is 65.
Solaris : the Urbino 12 and Urbino 15 are still in use. One Urbino 12, 22 Urbino 15 and Urbino 15 CNG were retired, and all three Urbino 18 buses were sold off.
TEDOM C12 G : four models are still in use, although will be retired soon.
Irisbus Citelis
Retired
Karosa : these buses were diesel or CNG powered. All models - the C734, C744, B731, B732, B741, B932, and B941 - were retired from 2013–14.
Novoplan C12 : all 3 are retired.
Ikarus : all three models - the Ikarus 280, Ikarus 415, and Ikarus 435 - were retired.
Trolleybuses
There are three models of trolleybuses in use - the Škoda 15Tr, Škoda 15TrM' and the Škoda 14 Tr - which were manufactured by Škoda between 1989–1993 and were modernised between 1998–2006 by Škoda WorksOstrov. In 2015, the city underwent a mass track reconstruction which resulted in the temporary stoppage of these services. The Škoda 14TrM returned to service in 2018, and it travels on Sundays. DPMK also refurbished a Škoda 15Tr which restarted service on the 22nd of June 2019 - the same day as the reconstructed 15Tr - and was used on a "trolleybus day" trip that took passengers to the "trolleybus cemetery", where trolleybuses in 2015 or earlier were discarded.
