Yerevan’s Deputy Mayor Suren Grigoryan, responding to opposition accusations of financial corruption in the transport sector, stated that his administration has demonstrated maximum transparency, countering the opposition’s claims. He made these remarks during a Public Television broadcast.

Grigoryan emphasized that under their governance, the volume of uncovered shadow data in passenger transport has been unprecedented, adding that if they had been pocketing money, they would not have eliminated the shadow economy.

"If we were pocketing money, would we reduce the shadow economy?" he asked. "Would we openly say how much shadow activity existed and that we’ve eliminated it? We would thrive on it. I am compelled to explain this plainly," the official noted.

He stressed that a government aiming to profit from the shadow economy would never strive for transparency.

"Imagine if I planned to steal something from a room but installed cameras all over to record everything. Is that the logic?" he added.

From February 1, a new public transport fare will take effect. The municipality announced four payment methods: transport cards, QR codes, mobile applications, and bank cards.

Former Yerevan Mayor Hayk Marutyan, calling for a boycott of the fare increase starting February 1, stated that there is no legislative provision imposing a fine of 50,000 drams for refusing to pay the increased fare.