Gyumri to Have a New Route Network and Smart Bus Stops

Gyumri will have a new route network and improved roads this autumn, with the construction of smart bus stops. This was announced by Artyom Sargsyan, head of the transport department of Gyumri municipality, in an interview with NEWS.am.

“The route network in Gyumri is 10-12 years old, and no changes have been made, while there have been population movements in the city, with people moving in from shacks to urban areas. Therefore, we have commissioned a new route network from an expert group, which will be implemented in two parts: one will study the old network, while the other will refine the new route network,” he noted.

According to Sargsyan, it is likely that the bus routes will increase to 3-4, which means the city will need new buses: “Currently, we have 2. Since we will have 3-4 bus routes, we will need approximately 60 buses, out of which 14 are currently operating in Gyumri. This means that the municipality needs to acquire around 46 buses, and a competition will be announced to provide those buses at our proposed price.”

When asked about the funding for the route network reform project, Artyom Sargsyan stated that it is planned to be financed from municipal and state budget allocations. “At the council meeting, 250 million from the saved budget of 2018 was allocated to transport. However, since this is a large project, we have also requested a subsidy from the government at a ratio of 60:40 percent. The project has already been presented to the government, and it needs to be approved for the government to allocate 360 million, so we can acquire those 45 buses along with our 250 million,” he elaborated.

Sargsyan detailed that the competitions would be announced in July, with the project expected to be completed in August, and the new routes to begin operation shortly thereafter.

He also announced that by 2020, Gyumri will have 70 smart bus stops: “We have signed a contract with a company that is making a significant investment to provide 70 smart bus stops by 2020. This means that 30 will be installed in 2019, and 40 in 2020. They plan to set up the first sample of the stops by the end of March or in April.”

He added that the stops will have Wi-Fi and electricity, along with USB ports for charging mobile phones.

For more details, visit the original source website.