A guide to the public transport tickets in Łódź

This info may be useful for the people who aren't from Łódź and who want to visit our HS. It's often a challenge when we arrive at a new city to find out how to buy a public transport ticket...

• the ticket system of the Łódź public transport is based on time-limited tickets – valid for 20, 40 or 60 minutes
  • there are no single-ride tickets
  • so before buying the ticket, you have to check how much time the ride will take
  • if you are running out of ticket time, you can buy a surcharge ticket in the ticket vending machine or in the app; such a ticket must be validated or bought (online) before the original ticket expires
• often, as a form of help for the passengers because of the extensive upgrade and maintenance works in the city, the duration of tickets becomes extended: from 20 to 40 minutes and from 40 to 60 minutes
  • in such a case, 60-minute tickets make no sense
  • it's a paradox, but then a ticket valid, for example, for 40 minutes, is still officially called a "20-minute ticket"
  • currently (September/December 2022) such a situation takes place
• there are also daily tickets – valid until the midnight of the specific day
• the easiest way to check the current ticket prices is the MPK website
• on nearly all buses and trams there are ticket vending machines, tickets aren't sold by the vehicle drivers
  • the bus lines: 201 and 202 are an exception from this rule – there is no way to buy a ticket on those buses
  • you won't be punished for not having a ticket in case of a ticket vending machine failure
  • a ticket from the ticket vending machine must be stamped in a validating machine (a small brown or yellow one, with a slot for the ticket and a display with the current time), it's then valid from the moment of stamping
  • most ticket vending machines only accept card payments (contactless or PIN-based), some – only contactless card payments and cash (coins)
  • on most vehicles it is not possible to buy a ticket using cash
• tickets can also be bought using mobile apps: SkyCash, JakDojade.pl, zBiletem.pl, moBilet, mPay, zBiletem.pl, Mint Mobile
• if you want to buy a ticket using cash
  • at many locations in the city there are stationary ticket vending machines, which accept cash (coins and notes)
  • tickets can also be bought at the sales points cooperating with the MPK
  • sometimes they can also be bought at random newsstands and in small grocery stores
• you can ride ŁKA and Polregio trains within the official borders of Łódź using the city public transport tickets
  • on some ŁKA trains, there are ticket validating machines – near one of the entrances, nearby the ticket vending machine – however, if it isn't present (and on Polregio trains), you can ask the train conductor, who will validate your ticket manually
  • from the train conductors, at the train ticket counters, in the ticket vending machines on ŁKA trains (after choosing a train connection within the official borders of Łódź, Zgierz or Pabianice), as well as in the MPK ticket vending machines (after selecting "tickets of other carriers"), you can buy a "zone ticket" of ŁKA or Polregio – such a ticket costs the same as much as the city public transport ticket for the given ride duration (only the discounts are different) and it is also valid on buses and trams within the official borders of Łódź, and additionaly also on Polregio and ŁKA trains in Zgierz and Pabianice
• carrying luggage is free of charge
• the current locations of the vehicles of a selected bus or tram line can be watched using mobile apps: the official one – myBus – or one created by a local activist – WatchLine