The objective of a sustainable transport policy is that the transport system satisfies the economic, social and environmental needs of a city. Having an efficient urban transport system is essential for the well-functioning of daily activities and has a significant impact on economic growth. During the WBSA Railway Summit 2010, the urban transport sessions focused on the rail transport network as the basis for sustainable development and the need to set up a transport authority in order to improve the quality of transport services and implement new projects which require funding. The discussion also focused on turning state-owned urban transport operators into corporations in order to provide high-quality transport services.
In order to have efficient and long-term results in the public transport sector, the authorities should become more involved. However, if the disregard this important aspect, the activity of an entire city can be disrupted: from economic instability to chaos in traffic, increased number of accidents, increased pollution etc. If the authorities allocate funds to the transport companies, therefore encouraging new projects, and lead campaigns to promote the use of public transport, then the situation changes radically: activities are improved, the quality of life increases and citizens can benefit from efficient, safe, fast and comfortable public transport services. In this context, every city, like many other European cities, needs to have a public transport authority in order to ensure the quality of this type of transport. Romania’s capital, Bucharest, should have a transport authority based on the model of the existing transport authorities in Berlin or Paris, which serve millions of passengers and manage to bring added-value to the level of quality provided. “In Bucharest, several authorities try to ensure public transportation based on the demand. From the point of view of prices, projects, financing etc., public transport has many problems. We need a public authority, both at local and regional level”, said Ion Dedu, Executive Director of the Directorate for Transport, Roads and Traffic Management within Bucharest Municipality (PMB), during the Railway Summit 2010. He also said that the transport authority will regulate the supply of transport services and that private operators will have to meet harsher requirements in terms of the quality of their services and vehicles. In case of the latter, harsher requirements will have to be met, so that passengers can benefit from higher levels of comfort and quality. “Bucharest needs to have a strategy for urban transport. That is why we have to act in creating a transport authority. This will help us develop a series of programs, such as safety systems, ticketing systems, vehicle fleet management systems, passenger information and timetables. We also need political support; we need to involve operators, consultants and product suppliers”, added Ion Dedu. During the urban transport session, Ion Dedu presented the CAPRICE project (CAPital Regions Integrating Collective transport for increased energy Efficiency), which includes 5 public transport authorities (from Berlin, Bucharest, Paris, Warsaw and Vilnius). These five transport authorities exchange experience and best practices in order to increase the quality of the services provided and also improve energy efficiency in public transportation. The objectives of this project include: efficiency and quality increase, improvement of public transportation as an energy-efficient system, implementation of policies meant to stimulate the introduction of non-polluting vehicles. “With regards to the implementation of pilot-projects, in Bucharest, the participants will exchange ideas and documents related to the contracts and tenders organised in the public transport sector. In Warsaw, a new on-line transport organiser will be introduced, which will provide information about how to go from one point to another using public transportation”, added Dedu. PMB has been a partner in the CAPRICE project since September 2009. This project runs over a period of three years and it will end in 2011.
Turning state-owned operators into corporations is vital for the quality of transport services
During the urban transport session another issue was raised: the legal status of the companies that provide public transport services. Turning state-owned operators into corporations is vital in current conditions. Csuzi István, General Manager Oradea Transport Local SA (OTL), mentioned that, starting with August 2010, “Oradea Transport Local changed its legal status from state-owned operator into a corporation. OTL SA has taken over all the rights and obligations of the former state-owned operator. In order to be a metropolitan transport operator, you need massive financing for the public transport system for the acquisition of vehicles. However, changing the legal status of the company is important for the development of many other projects.” However, “this change is hard to achieve in Romania, because the procedures take a very long time to be approved. We have all the necessary documents in order to receive approval to operate as a corporation, but we have no answer so far”, said Radu Popescu, General Manager RATPh (Ploieşti Public Transport Operator). “Indeed, the process is difficult, but we need to push forward and turn these operators into corporations in order to improve the activities. In Bucharest we cannot implement a series of projects if the operator doesn’t become corporation, just as in any other city”, said Viorica Beldean, founding member CODATU. This matter raised many discussions among the participants, who said that this transformation depends mainly on the authorities, who haven’t been able to provide a fair legal framework. This way, it seems that they encourage private road transport, which in its turn leads to the degradation of the public transport sector. “It’s not easy to turn a state-owned operator into a corporation. The matter of the patrimony is very important. There is a legal framework for the contracts signed between authorities and operators. This process cannot be applied so easily”, said Constantin Donea, Executive President URTP (Romanian Association of Public Transport). Another issue raised by those who attended the urban transport session was the transport system between Bucharest and Ploieşti, a strongly industrialized city. Public transport between these two cities is deficient and requires stimulation from the authorities in order to create a balance between the public and private road transport system. “We need to set up a metropolitan authority that can stipulate and manage the citizens’ mobility in order to ensure transport between Bucharest and Ploieşti. We will never see any results if we continue to act separately. Transport between these two major cities should be considered as a whole, as a plan, and the authority should not hold the monopole, it should manage the transport services. Currently, there is a disloyal competition between the operators. We have to establish certain routes, traffic frequencies and vehicles. If we don’t take into account the means of transport, we risk of losing passengers”, explained Radu Popescu. The number of passengers who use public transportation on the Bucharest-Ploieşti route drops every year because of the lack of traffic management, causing the passenger to lose time. As a result, more and more passengers resort to individual transport. Radu Popescu also explained the current situation of his company and presented their future projects. In this context, Ploieşti has initiated projects to renew its vehicle fleet. They acquired 24 low-floor trolleys and plan to acquire 50 new buses to replace the entire fleet. For 2011, “RATPh plans to rehabilitate the two tram lines. In 2012, we will acquire 10 new trams and in 2014 we plan to buy another 10. In 2014, over 70% of the vehicle fleet used for public transportation will be new”, added Popescu.
by Pamela Luică
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