Timişoara tram line 4 – Cetăţii Boulevard has been completely modernised, the Municipality announced and is the first project completed within the Romania’s 2021-2027 West Regional Programme through the European Regional and Development Fund (ERDF).
The project covered the rehabilitation of an artery of major importance that generates benefits and better living conditions for all the residents of the city.
As part of the results, 3.51 km of tram tracks along Cetății Boulevard have been rehabilitated, 9 tram stations have been upgraded and 2.88 km of cycling infrastructure have been developed. Five new bike-sharing systems and traffic management system have been installed including four accessibility measures for people with reduced mobility such as special parking areas, tactile signage, access ramps and acoustic systems of traffic lights.
“Cetății Boulevard is an investment for all citizens and was a hard project implemented with European funds. The boulevard is now a mobility corridor with real options for everyone who travels in the area including pedestrians, drivers, cyclists or public transport users. It’s a big step to encourage sustainable urban mobility. I am confident that more and more people from Timișoara will use green public transport and bicycles as the infrastructure becomes more and more qualitative. We continue to invest with European funds in the urban mobility system and in the quality of public spaces in Timișoara,” Dominic Fritz, the Mayor of Timișoara said.
Since the resumption of trams, the system ensures more than 6.5 million journeys on lines 4 and 7 and almost 16,000 tram trips.
RON 110.8 million (EUR 22 million) is the value of the global project of which RON 66.6 million (EUR 13.2 million) is the European co-financing through the Cohesion Fund – European Regional Development Fund.
“We are happy that the first project completed with European funds through the We West Regional Programme is an investment that ensures a modern and sustainable public transport system for the people of Timișoara. We all want to get home, work or school as quickly as possible, without wasting time in traffic or looking for parking spaces. And only through such investments and measures can public transport become a real, attractive and sustainable alternative to private car transport. In addition, it does not generate pollution, it does not have a negative impact on the environment, which means an improvement in the quality of our life, everything,” said Sorin Maxim, the director general of ADR West, the Management Authority for West Regional Programme 2021 – 2027.
The objectives of the project include increasing the average traffic speed, reducing operating, maintenance and repair costs, improving traffic safety, passenger comfort and environmental parameters affected by public transport, as well as reducing the duration and cost of passenger transport.
The modernisation of Timişoara tram line 4 will positively impact the life of more than 3.2 million people per year using the tram. This is the first infrastructure project completed under the West Regional Programme in the new 2021-2027 Cohesion Policy programming period.
The city of Timişoara, in the western part of Romania, is implementing projects to develop its urban rail transport system. In 2021, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) announced a EUR 20.3 million loan for the modernisation of Timişoara tram system including the renewal of tram fleet and the rehabilitation of T5 tram line, projects which also obtained a EUR 53.6 million European co-financing under the Regional Operational Programme 2014 – 2020.
In 2019, the municipality awarded Bozankaya a EUR 33 million contract for the delivery of 16 low-floor trams including an option for 24 additional vehicles. With these options, EUR 80 million is the value of the contract. In January 2024, the municipality ordered from Bozankaya 17 30-metre-long low floor trams totalling EUR 33 million.
In June 2024, the “Tram fleet renewal” project has been completed, the municipality says, under which 23 light rail vehicles have been acquired which have travelled 1.2 million. The project implemented into three phases had a total value of RON 293.3 million (EUR 58 million), of which RON 235 million (EUR 46.5 million) is the eligible cost, with RON 4.7 million (almost EUR 1 million) is the local budget contribution.
“This is an important project for Timișoara which has been implemented several programmes to develop and improve public transport system and its infrastructure. Recently, T5 line has been inaugurated after seven years and we have completed the modernisation of tram line 4 on the Cetății Boulevard and by the end of this summer we want to finish the modernisation of the tram line along the Stan Vidrighin Boulevard. All these projects aim at improving the quality of our public transport and proving sustainable mobility,” the Deputy Mayor of Timișoara Ruben Lațcău said.
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