The backbone of the planned reform is having local buses run based on train and long-distance coach schedules. Minister Madis Kallas said that the reform prioritizes cycle-based departures.

"There will be departures and arrivals at certain intervals," Kallas explained, giving the example of island ferry links. "There is a fixed cycle there of one hour and ten minutes or 35 minutes in summer. This cycle is constant and it is easier to build other things on such a base."

The transition to cyclic public transport is the task of transport specialist Hannes Luts at the ministry whose analysis from last year suggests that even if Estonia makes currently planned investments, the railroad's throughput would not be enough for a [nationwide] cyclic system to function.

This means that tens of millions of euros worth of additional work to reconstruct train stations as well as add pairs of tracks in certain sections is needed. Madis Kallas said that not everything needs to be achieved at once.

"There are things we won't even be able to do three or four years from now," Kallas admitted. "But it is one thing to have an ideal model to strive for and another to first have cyclical public transport in some areas."

Kallas said that the investments will also be made in stages. "We cannot talk about the Kristiine public transport hub in the perspective of just a few years. It is excellent if we can get the planning phase done."

The minister plans to first test cyclic public transport in the western part of Estonia's largest Harju County and Lääne County, as well as on the major islands of Saaremaa and Hiiumaa where the cycle is dictated by the ferries connecting to the mainland.

"We are also looking at more complex challenges, such as Southern Estonia and the Tartu area. We are trying to move gradually," Kallas explained, adding that Southeast Estonia where most people travel by bus also holds possibilities.

"But I have to say that while train traffic is 100 percent up to us, we will need to consult with operators of long-distance coaches. We've had good contacts with them so far."

Subsidies to grow by €10-20 million annually

The Ministry of Regional Affairs has said that the mobility reform should also introduce a universal ticket system where the same ticket could be used on all vehicles and its price wouldn't depend on whether the person is taking a train or bus.

The aim of changes is to make using public transport easier and more convenient and convince more people to opt for it instead of a personal vehicle. For example, around eight million people took the train in Estonia last year. The country's transport and mobility development plan aims for 20 million passengers. More people are also expected to use local, county-level buses.

Because a part of public transport is subsidized in Estonia, more passengers necessitates more subsidies. Madis Kallas said that first a system should be introduced where public transport subsidies would not have to be sought in the government reserve on an annual basis. Additionally, money going toward public transport should grow every year.

"Investments aside, our basic need today is €135 million annually. We would need an extra €10-20 million from one year to the next," the minister said. "That would allow us to build a public transport system to suggest there is life outside Tallinn and its near vicinity."

This would see public transport subsidies grow to around a quarter of a billion euros in a decade's time. Madis Kallas said that we should not make such far-reaching calculations today.

"More passengers on trains will mean more in the way of ticket revenue. It is difficult to forecast things that far ahead."

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