The Barcelona Metropolitan Area (AMB) offers the Tarjeta Rosa, or Pink Card, providing discounted or free public transport across 36 metropolitan municipalities. This social travel pass helps seniors, individuals with a disability of 33% or more, their companions, and those with limited financial resources. Eligibility criteria for the card vary significantly based on age and family income, impacting thousands of residents.
Tarjeta Rosa Modalities and Income Thresholds
The Tarjeta Rosa comes in two distinct types. The free Tarjeta Rosa allows unlimited travel without any cost. The reduced Tarjeta Rosa requires users to purchase the T-4 card, a 10-journey pass costing just €2.25. The AMB determines which card a person receives based on their gross annual family income per person.
To qualify for the free Tarjeta Rosa, an individual's gross annual family income must be up to €9,240. For the reduced Tarjeta Rosa, the income limit extends to €18,480 per person annually. These thresholds ensure the benefits reach those most in need within the metropolitan area.
Age-Based Eligibility Across Municipalities
Age also plays a critical role in eligibility, with access varying by municipality. Nine specific municipalities allow residents to apply for the card from age 60. These include Barcelona city, Badalona, Castelldefels, Cornellà, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, El Prat de Llobregat, Sant Adrià de Besòs, Sant Vicenç dels Horts, and Santa Coloma de Gramenet.
Viladecans stands as the only municipality where residents can apply at 61 years old. Another nine municipalities offer access from age 62, including Esplugues de Llobregat, Montgat, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Sant Joan Despí, Sant Just Desvern, and Tiana. Residents of Gavà become eligible at 63. The majority of the 36 metropolitan municipalities, 19 in total, offer the card once residents reach the official retirement age of 65.
Acquiring and Using the Reduced Card
Companions of individuals with a disability can also request a companion pass. For these passes, financial resources are not a requirement for access. When users obtain the reduced Tarjeta Rosa, they must acquire the T-4 card at various points. These include tobacconists, Metro ticket machines, and through the Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB) and AMB Mobilitat applications.
Users can load up to two T-4 cards, equivalent to 20 journeys, onto their Tarjeta Rosa at the time of purchase. Each journey permits up to three transfers within a 75-minute window. This time limit begins from the moment of ticket validation. The card is valid for travel on the Metro, urban and interurban buses, trams, and Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat (FGC) services.
T-Social Card to Expand Benefits in 2027
However, the national rail service, Rodalies, does not accept this social travel card. The Tarjeta Rosa specifically focuses on movements within the Barcelona Metropolitan Area. Meanwhile, municipalities in the second metropolitan ring, which are not part of the AMB, will launch a new "T-Social" card in the first quarter of 2027.
The Association of Municipalities for Mobility and Urban Transport (AMTU) drives this new initiative. AMTU estimates that approximately 70,000 people from around 20 municipalities could benefit from the T-Social. This card will allow individuals already receiving social transport benefits to travel across different participating municipalities using a single pass.
Each municipality decides its own economic conditions and age requirements for the T-Social, mirroring the Tarjeta Rosa system. Next year, Granollers, Sabadell, Terrassa, Mollet del Vallès, Rubí, Sant Quirze del Vallès, La Roca del Vallès, and Les Franqueses del Vallès will start offering the card. More distant municipalities like Igualada, Vilafranca del Penedès, Sitges, and Vic will also participate. AMTU expects the T-Social initiative to expand further across Catalonia.
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Originally published by El Periódico Barcelona. Read original article.
