Bucharest’s City Hall put up for public debate the Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan 2016-2030 for Bucharest-Ilfov, and one of the provisions is to set up the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

The plan provides the introduction of dedicated lanes for public transport over a distance of 25 kilometers. The authorities also plan to acquire 900 buses, trolley buses, and trams. These include 100 trolley buses, 500 buses, of which 300 will be electric, as well as 300 trams. The tram infrastructure will also be extended by 41 kilometers and some 1,800 tram stations will be refurbished, according to the plan.

The authorities also plan to build Park&Ride parking lots at the key entrance points in Bucharest, as well as underground parking places across the city. Moreover, the bike infrastructure will be developed, including the bike sharing system.

The measures included in the plan will be carried out with the support of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), said Bucharest mayor Gabriela Firea.

The mobility plan also aims to ease traffic in the “areas with maximum expansion”. One of the projects aims to widen the Prelungirea Ghencea street, between the Brasov street and the Bucharest ring road. Another plan for easing the traffic is widening the Barbu Vacarescu and the Av. Alexandru Serbanescu streets.

Modernizing the tram line on the Dimitrie Pompeiu boulevard and extending it to Barbu Vacarescu would also help ease the traffic in northern Bucharest, where an important business district has developed in recent years.

The mobility plan will be in public debate, and citizens, NGOs and companies can come up with suggestions. At the end of the public debate, the General Council of the Bucharest City Hall will approve the project.

editor@romania-insider.com