Buenos Aires commuters are facing a staggering 360% rise in subway fares, marking one of the most significant price hikes in Argentina's stringent budget austerity efforts under libertarian President Javier Milei.

Following weeks of legal proceedings, a judge on Thursday revoked an injunction that had temporarily halted the planned fare increase. This decision paved the way for the fare adjustment to come into force on Friday morning.

Public transportation fares are a contentious topic throughout Latin America. Metro fare increases have previously incited social unrest, as seen in Chile's mass protests in 2019.

Milei's austerity experiment hits commuters hard

Overnight, the fare for a single ride in Buenos Aires surged more than threefold, from 125 pesos (14 cents) to 574 pesos (64 cents), exacerbating Argentina's severe cost-of-living crisis.

President Milei is implementing drastic cuts in public spending across various sectors, including subsidies and state-owned enterprises, as part of a radical free-market experiment. The goal is to restore the country's credibility with foreign investors and combat hyperinflation.

However, in the short term, these deregulation and austerity measures have led to increased inflation, currently standing at 289% annually, one of the highest rates globally. This has significantly impacted the lives of ordinary Argentinians and contributed to the country's economic downturn.

Read more: Argentina's Milei orders deregulation of economy, thousands in protest

Inflation in Argentina surpassed 200% in 2023

A majority of Argentinian households can no longer afford the traditional Argentinian barbecue due to extreme inflation that has topped 200% in 2023, Reuters reported in January.

Decades of debt and financial mismanagement have led to a catastrophic economic effect on Argentinians, with an estimated 40% living in poverty.

According to official figures, the inflation rate reached 25.5% month on month in December. It is projected to rise quicker in the coming months after President Javier Milei's administration depreciated the peso by more than 50% last month as part of his so-called "shock therapy" policies to rescue the struggling economy.

Last December, Milei revealed a series of measures to deregulate the country's struggling economy, eliminating or changing more than 300 regulations via the presidential decree, including on rent and labor practices. 

Milei, a self-described anarcho-capitalist who has been in office for months, pledged to curb inflation but warned that economic "shock" treatment is the only solution for the economy. Some of the suggested changes include the elimination of a law regulating rent and preventing the privatization of state enterprises.