The List of Things Lost on Prague Public Transport in 2022 is Awesome

Passengers using Prague’s public transport reported a record number of lost or forgotten items last year, reaching almost 8,500.

In addition to the traditional items such as bags, mobile phones, and documents, people left behind a variety of unusual items, including a box of sandwiches, a pool cue, a toilet seat, and even pets such as a pair of iguanas.

The Capital City Transport Company spokeswoman, Aneta Rehkova, released a press statement on Tuesday.

According to Rehkova, the number of items reported by passengers to the DPP Infoline as lost or forgotten on public transport rose by almost 34% year-on-year to 8,479.

Compared to the pre-pandemic year of 2019, the increase was approximately 5%. Just under a third, or 2,414 items, were returned to their original owners last year. “In absolute terms, this is the third-highest number in the nearly 20-year history of the DPP Infoline,” she added.

Since 2016, the transport company has been registering found items in a special internal application used by drivers, supervisors, and other DPP operational employees. In 2021, they found 7,229 items, a 41% year-on-year increase, of which half were returned to their owners, the highest number ever.

Every day, dozens of everyday items, small portable electronic devices, sports equipment, medical aids, musical instruments, and curiosities are lost on Prague’s public transport.

For example, lost items reported to the hotline last year included a Bible, a handheld steel safe, a paperweight, a thermos, a bath seat, a painting, a glucometer, a drill, a heat gun, a fish reel, a Czech flag on a pole, a microscope, baking pans, a blind cane, a drawer, a dog muzzle, braces, and even a carnival mask.

The most frequently lost phones were Samsung and Apple devices.

The most common lost documents were public transport passes, driving or identity cards, or passports from various countries, such as Israel, Japan, Malaysia, Moldova, or Uzbekistan.

The transport company hands over all found and unclaimed items without personal data to the lost and found office at 5 Karolína Světlá Street in Prague 1, which is run by the municipality.