Frequently Asked Question

MUGI system

• Where can I use my MUGI card?

  The Mugi system can be used on most public transport services in Gipuzkoa.

  Inter-city coaches:

  • Lurraldebus (www.lurraldebus.eus)

  City buses:

  • Donostia (Dbus)
    
  • Irun
  • Errenteria
    
  • Eibar
    
  • Zarautz
  • Arrasate
    
  • Hernani
    
  • Lasarte-Oria
    
  • Oiartzun
    

  Railways

  • Euskotren: MUGI fares are applied only between Hendaia and Berriz, with EuskoTren fares being charged on the rest of the line (Berriz-Bilbao).
  • Renfe: MUGI fares are applied only between Irun and Brinkola.

  The MUGI card can also be used on the following services:

  • Vitoria-Gasteiz tramway (www.euskotren.eus/eu)
  • Bilbao tramway (www.euskotren.eus/eu)
  • Larreineta-Trapagaran funicular railway (www.euskotren.eus/eu)

• How does the MUGI card work?

  Since it is a contactless card, just hold it up to the ticket validation machine before commencing your journey.

  • On inter-city coaches (Lurraldebus) cards must be validated both upon boarding and upon leaving the vehicle. Upon boarding, simply hold your card up to the incoming validation device located either on the ticket machine or behind the driver's seat. Before alighting, you must again validate your card by holding it up to the reader by the exit door. Failure to do this will result in you being charged the single-ticket (paper ticket) fare for an end-to-end journey on the line in question.
  • On city bus lines (Donostia, Irun, Errenteria, Eibar, Zarautz, Arrasate, Hernani, Lasarte-Oria and Oiartzun) the card only needs to be validated upon boarding.
  • When the driver validates your card, you do not need to re-validate it when you leave the vehicle.
  • On rail services (Euskotren and Renfe), cards must be validated upon entering and leaving the station or platform. Failure to do so will result in a €3,84 penalty.

• How are fares calculated?

  The MUGI card fare system is based on zones (the more zones travelled through, the higher the fare) and on the number of journeys made per month (the more journeys made, the cheaper they work out).

• What fares are applied on city bus lines?

  On the city bus services on which the system can be used (in Donostia, Irun, Errenteria, Eibar, Zarautz, Arrasate, Hernani, Lasarte-Oria and Oiartzun), an initial fare set by each operator is charged:

  • Donostia: €1'85 single (cash payment)
  • Irun and Errenteria: €1'55 single (cash payment)
  • Eibar, Zarautz, Arrasate, Hernani, Lasarte-Oria and Oiartzun: €1'35 single (cash payment)

  MUGI discounts are then applied to those initial fares.

• How many journeys must I take to earn a 48%/58%/90%/100% discount?

  • - For 20 journeys or fewer a 48% discount on the single fare (paper ticket, cash payment) is applied.
  • - From 21 to 50 journeys the discount is 58%.
  • - From the 51st journey onwards the discount is 90%.
  • - From the 51st journey onwards, young people travel for free (with a non-transferable reduced fare card).

  Discounts are based on the number of journeys made within the same calendar month. The journey counter is reset to zero at the beginning of each month.

• Are there discounts on night-time or special services?

  No discounts are applied on night-time services, and the same fares are charged for payments in cash and with cards. However, night-time journeys with MUGI cards are included in the count for subsequent application of discounts based on the number of journeys made.

• What discounts apply on connecting services?

  For connections between services run by the same company there is no charge (Lurraldebus - Lurraldebus, DBus-DBus, Irunbus – Irunbus). However, for connections between different operators, there is a 75% discount on the cheaper fare; users are therefore charged the full amount for the more expensive of the two fares and pay only 25% of the cheaper one, regardless of the order in which the journeys are made. For the purposes of the journey counter, this is counted as a single journey for both cases.

  • On inter-city journeys: For journeys on Lurraldebus, Euskotren or Renfe there is no charge or are discounts for connections made within less than 30 minutes, depending on the operators. This is counted as the time between validating the card upon alighting from the first mean of transport and boarding the second.
  • On city bus services: The maximum connection time is 60 minutes from the validation of the first journey to that of the second (45 minutes on Dbus-Dbus connections).
  • On long-distance coach tickets purchased at ticket offices or tickets dispensed by drivers: The maximum connection time is 120 minutes from the moment the ticket is purchased at the ticket office.

• How do I register for the MUGI system?

  Website (Access your account > Private area) / Mugi APP (My settings > Private area)

  To see account movements, top up cards and obtain receipts for non-transferable cards you must register as a user of the system. To do this, go to the Private Area on the website or App and provide your details as requested (ID card/Foreign resident permit/Passport, phone nº, postcode and e-mail address). Your password will be e-mailed to you, and you can then log on and carry out most operations.

  Registration is per card (not per user), and the same personal data given on applying for the card must be provided.

  When minors are registered the details of the ID document used in the application must be provided (regardless of whether they are those of the minor or of a parent/guardian).

  If you have any problems registering, please ring our user helpline on 943 000 117 or e-mail us at info@mugi.eus.

• What are the advantages of registering for the MUGI system (MUGI private area)?

  Once the card is registered with the system, has been topped up and has been used at least once on a journey, the following operations can be carried out via the Private Area: checking of account movements, topping up, obtaining of receipts, etc.

  Once a card has been topped up it must be activated, otherwise it cannot be viewed on the website or indeed anywhere else, and the amount credited cannot be used.

• How can I check how many journeys I have made?

  Anyone wishing to do so can obtain direct information regarding the number of journeys made and the amount spent on their card by registering for access to the Private Area of the www.mugi.eus website.

  You can also check the last four movements and journeys made with the card at any top-up point and at Kutxabank ATMs. Information can also be requested from the Gipuzkoa Regional Transport Authority either by e-mail (info@mugi.eus), or by sending a signed letter or fax with your request, giving your personal details, the card number and a photocopy of your ID card or passport.

• Where can I top up my MUGI card?

  The MUGI system has around 600 top-up points. Cards can be topped up at the following authorised locations:

  • Newspaper kiosks, tobacconists' and book shops with suitable p.o.s. terminals.
  • Certain public establishments.
  • Post offices.
  • Kutxabank ATMs.
  • Euskotren ticket machines and ticket offices.
  • Automatic top-up machines at the bus stations in Bilbao, Vitoria-Gasteiz and Donostia.
  • External automatic top-up machines at Avenue of Liberty 20, Donostia (on the corner of Txurruka street).
  • On-line, via the private area of the website, providing you are a registered user.

• How much credit can I load onto my card?

  You can top up from €5 to a maximum of €300, in multiples of €5. For on-line operations the maximum top-up is €100.

• How and when do on-line top-ups become available for use?

  On-line top-ups carried out before 23:00h are available from 05:00h the next day, and top-ups made after 23:00h take an extra day to become available.

  However, this type of top-ups must be activated on Lurraldebus coaches, city buses in Donostia, Irun, Errenteria and Zarautz, at PESA ticket offices or at Kutxabank ATMs. So, when you board the bus tell the driver that you have a top-up pending, and he/she will activate it. This can only be done by a driver. You can then use the card normally and validate your current journey.

  *City buses in Donostia:

  Top-ups can only be activated with the new dispensing machines by the driver’s position. They cannot be activated with other machines.

  Your top up will be activated as soon as you pay for a journey with the card. Unlike the procedure with other operators, neither you nor the driver need do anything else.

• What if I don't have enough credit on my card?

  • On Lurraldebus: Validation is permitted providing there is more than €0.18 in credit remaining on the card, even if the amount left is insufficient to pay the full fare (courtesy balance). The shortfall is adjusted during the next top-up.
  • On city buses and on long-distance coach tickets purchased at ticket offices: Your card must have the full amount required (there is no courtesy balance).
  • On Euskotren: You can only enter a station or platform if your card has enough balance for a one-zone journey.
  • On Renfe: You can only enter a station or platform if your card has enough balance for a one-zone journey.

• When does my card expire?

  • Senior: after 5 years
  • Disabled: after 2 years
  • Young : When the holder turns 18. After 2 years for over 18s.
  • Social: after 1 year
  • Large family: As indicated on the Large Family certificate, except for combinations of Large Family and other reduced fare tickets, in which case the card expires at the end of whichever validity period is shortest.
  • Ordinary cards: No expiry date.

• Interoperability. Use of MUGI/Lurraldebus-BAT-BARIK cards

  The introduction of an integrated ticketing system is a priority project for the Basque Government. The Transport Planning Directorate has sought to lay the groundwork for and take specific steps towards fulfilling that plan, with a view to gradually enabling all three cards (BAT in Araba, BARIK in Bizkaia and MUGI/Lurraldebus in Gipuzkoa) to be used on transport systems all over the three territories.

  It is already possible to use those three cards on the following transport systems:

  • City buses in Donostia: Dbus (www.dbus.eus)
  • Euskotren (www.euskotren.eus/eu):

  • • The main Bilbao-Donostia-Hendaia line.
    • The Amorebieta-Bermeo branch line.
    • Vitoria-Gasteiz tramway (www.euskotren.eus/eu)
    • Bilbao tramway (www.euskotren.eus/eu)
    • Larreineta-Trapagaran funicular railway (www.euskotren.eus/eu)

  Fares:

  • The current fares set for each card apply within its specific region, for example: for journeys on the Bilbao tramway with MUGI cards, the BARIK fare applies; for journeys with a MUGI card on the Gasteiz tramway, the BAT fare applies; for Dbus journeys with BARIK or BAT cards the MUGI rate applies.
  Euskotren applies its own fares on journeys that begin and/or end outside a card’s specific region and for inter-region journeys, for example: Hendaia-Bilbao, Eibar-Durango and Deba-Amorebieta
  • EuskoTren: On the main Bilbao-Donostia-Hendaia line, MUGI system fares apply only if the journey is between points located between Hendaia and Berriz. If the journey continues beyond those points the Euskotren fare will be applied to the full journey, as it is considered an inter-region journey.
  • Bonuses are not applied to the various MUGI/Lurraldebus reduced fare cards (Senior, Disabled, Social & Young) on journeys not included in the MUGI system.

• How can I contact MUGI customer service?

  By telephone on 943 000 117. From 08:30 until 19:30, from Monday to Friday; and from 08:30 until 13:00 on Saturdays.

  By fax: 943 000 116

  By e-mail: info@mugi.eus

  In person (it will only be attended by appointment; and this will be obtained at least 24 hours in advance, on the web www.mugi.eus or in 943 000 117): At Easo street 74, 1.C in Donostia. The schedule is as follows: Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 09:00 until 15:00; and Tuesday and Thursday from 9:00 to 18:00.