The authorities in Bucharest announced the intention to purchase new trams in order to modernise the rolling stock of the city. According to a project initiated by Bucharest Transport Operator (RATB), the Romanian capital could benefit from 100 new trams.
Thus, RATB will buy sixty 45-m long low-floor trams, thirty 35-m long fully low-floor trams and another ten 27-m long bidirectional trams with partially lowered floor.
Under the project initiated by RATB, the price of the offer submitted by rolling stock manufactures will be total and will include all auxiliary components and services for maintenance and exploitation of the tram fleet that are subject to the technical specification until de end of the warranty period.
At present, in terms of modernisation, the Romanian cities could be divided in three categories: completed projects (Oradea, Cluj-Napoca, Bucharest, Timisoara, Arad), ongoing projects (Iaşi, Botoşani) and nearly abandoned projects (Galaţi, Brăila, Ploieşti and Craiova). The local market has attracted the attention of rolling stock manufacturers for some time, but they are still trying to identify a method to sell the trams they manufacture in the country.
The urban railway transport remains one of the most attractive segments of the Romanian railway market. Romania maintains a network of well represented urban railway infrastructure, with 13 cities having tram networks and an underground network in Bucharest. Most of these cities carry out projects of tram infrastructure rehabilitation, many of them obtaining non-reimbursable funds by means of the Regional Operational Programme (ROP) Axis 1 – Support to sustainable development of cities. The urban tram transport is provided by public transport operators or private or state-owned companies.
Bucharest is the largest city and the capital of Romania counting more than 2 million inhabitants. The city has the longest tram network in Romania (143 km of double track), managed by RATB. Currently, there are 24 operational tram lines in Bucharest. Bucur Low Floor (Bucur LF) tram, manufactured at URAC (a repair plant belonging to RATB), is the most modern tram in Bucharest and the first low-floor tram in Romania (~60%).
Bucharest also has a light rail transport network, but in this case, there is an urgent need to purchase new vehicles. In 2015, the tram fleet in Bucharest amounted to 483 vehicles of which 279 operational. Their wear reached 82.97% and certain trams were over 40-year-old.
More than half of Bucharest’s tram network of 143 km has been upgraded starting with 2001, together with four depots, from own budget funds or using a EIB loan.
Share on:
