Ilsur Metshin noted that the city got funding and covered 60% of the cost of buses under the national project.
Forty new low-floor buses with methane engines of the NefAZ brand have arrived in Kazan. Tomorrow they will start running along two popular routes served by the MUE PATP-2 from the River Port to Derbyshki and from Mozhaiskaya Street to Farm-2 district. The Mayor of Kazan Ilsur Metshin inspected the new equipment purchased under the Safe and Quality Roads national project today.
“The city continues working steadfastly to improve transport services for the citizens, including the replacement and purchase of gas-powered buses. These are eco-friendly buses. This is our joint activity with KAMAZ, Russian and Tatarstan Government. Now almost a third of our buses run on methane. Thanks to the government of the country, we received a funding and covered 60% of the cost of buses under the national project. More than 800 million rubles were allocated for acquisition of buses”, - the Mayor said.
According to Ildar Shakirov, deputy head of the Executive Committee, who is responsible for transport and economic development, methane-powered buses started running in Kazan in 2018, during the preparation for the World Cup.
I.Metshin was told that NefAZ low-floor buses are designed for 80 passengers, the maximum speed is 80 km per hour. The transport is equipped with ramps for wheelchairs, as well as a body dumping system. The vehicles are equipped with a navigation system, electronic information boards, a video surveillance system, video recorders, talking system and heating devices.
Now there will be 217 gas-powered buses in the city. During the assembly of these type of vehicles, modern materials were used, the seats were improved, additional mirrors and a new-model dashboard was installed, as well the Euro 5 class engine, which is considered not only environmentally friendly, but also less noisy.
“Communicating with drivers and heads of transport enterprises, we identified a new task. We realized that during hot summer, just comfortable low-floor buses are no longer enough for us. Our next step is air conditioners for both drivers and passengers. In general, we continue to be leaders in the acquisition of new vehicles. We have the youngest public transport fleet among the million-plus cities. Probably, only Moscow can show better results, but there are other opportunities there. Nevertheless, we will strive for the best practices”, - I.Metshin concluded.