Electric bus connecting the Bus Station and the Train Station was replaced with a gas bus
Tartu City Government Press Release
9. september 2019 / The electric bus (line No. 25), which began travelling between the Bus Station and the Train Station last year, was used by approximately 90,000 passengers during the year.
Since the one year pilot project financed by the European Union has come to an end, the electric bus was replaced with a gas bus on 1 September.
The goal of the project was to determine the efficacy of using electric buses on urban routes: electricity consumption, charging logistics, ease of use and technical durability.
According to Tartu Deputy Mayor Raimond Tamm, the pilot project can be considered a success. ‘We proved that an electric bus can operate well and efficiently under our conditions. The main problem and question requiring a solution is the correct planning of charging infrastructure and the availability of sufficient electrical capacity. The operating costs for an electric bus are lower, for example, than those of a diesel or gas bus; however, the higher acquisition cost presently makes using an electric bus more expensive. We also received positive feedback from users, who had a great appreciation for the smooth movement of the bus and low noise level,’ added the Deputy Mayor.
According to Jaanus Tamm, Project Manager with the City Management Department, the City Government considers it important that a good connection between the Bus Station and the Train Station is ensured, one that allows travellers to quickly and conveniently reach the train from the City Centre, and vice versa. ‘Even though a slight reduction in the number of passengers was seen on this line due to the entry into service of the new urban network on 1 September, we decided to keep it running until at least the end of the year. At which time we will analyse the use of the line and decide whether to continue operating it over a longer period of time,’ Said Tamm.
The electric bus operating on line No. 25 travelled between the Bus Station and the Train Station from 3 September 2018 until 30 August of this year. As of 1 September 2019 the line is being served by a gas bus instead of an electric bus. In connection with the lack of passengers travelling in the morning from the Ihaste and Annelinn districts to the train headed to Tallinn, as of 9 September a change will be made to line No. 25, with the morning start for the line from Ihaste being cancelled. The line will instead start from the Bus Station.
The electric bus pilot project was implemented within the framework of the Baltic Sea Region programme BSR Electric, and regular service was partially financed by the European Regional Development Fund.
Viimati muudetud 09.09.2019