Adidas collaborates on new shoes that double as Berlin transit passes

Berlin’s main public transport company Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG) has collaborated with Adidas on limited edition sneakers that double as annual transit passes.

The new Adidas EQT Support 93/Berlin feature a transit pass embedded into the shoes toungues that are styled in a likeness to the BVG annual pass. The shoe also features a camouflage pattern that is seen on the city’s train seats.

Petra Reetz of the BVG, who spoke to the Guardian, was not sure about the collaboration at first, but sees it as a creative way to get more people to use the public transport system:

“The motivation behind the collaboration is really to get young people on to public transport… I said, ‘We are a public transport system, not Michael Jordan’... But in a big city like Berlin, the quality of life and quality of the air are important. We wanted to tell young people public transport is cool – you don’t need to buy a car.”

Hundreds of people, not just sneaker-heads, apparently camped out at the Berlin shoe store Overkill for multiple days in order to get their hands on the new collaboration. A major draw might have been the price of the shoes. The shoes cost €180, but the annual BVG pass costs €728.

Find our more on the new Adidas trainers here

Harrison is Mixmag's East Coast Editor. Follow him on Twitter here