Uzbekistan may reimburse part of the costs of transport enterprises serving intra-district routes

At the meeting, Shavkat Mirziyoyev stressed the need to expand the scale and improve the quality of transport services among villages, district and regional centers.

“Transportation among towns, districts and villages should be convenient, safe and accessible for all people. They should be satisfied with the services,” the President said.

The possibility of subsidizing passenger transportation was noted at the meeting. The ministries of finance and transport were instructed to jointly develop a procedure for reimbursing part of the costs of transport enterprises serving intra-district routes. Starting next year, this new system will be implemented (after testing) in one district of each region.

Mirziyoyev noted that the buses running between the district and regional centers are outdated, some of them are in operation longer than the expected service life. The degree of provision with buses per 100 thousand people is 24. In Surkhandarya, Kashkadarya, Namangan and Andijan regions, this figure is below 15. Next year, an additional 800 buses will be required to update the vehicle fleet.

The prices of domestically produced buses, the President emphasized, are higher than the ones manufactured abroad, therefore it is important to enhance the level of localization of the production of buses and minibusses.

A procedure will be introduced to compensate transport companies purchasing buses for part of loans that exceed the base rate of the Central Bank.

The President paid special attention to the need to optimize public transport routes in Samarkand.

The regional khokimiyat and responsible ministries were instructed to devise a draft master plan for a convenient transport system in Samarkand. It should provide for measures to increase the throughput of major intersections, to organize the movement of buses along a designated lane, bring large buses to the route and reduce intervals.

Similar master plans will be developed for 30 cities across the country with the participation of faculty and students of Tashkent State Transport University in order to spur the role of this institution in the transport system reform.

“For many years there had been no scientific approach to transport and logistics issues. Lack of modern-minded specialists is the most pressing problem in this industry,” the President said.

Shavkat Mirziyoyev emphasized the need to open new and revise existing routes based on the needs of the population, reconstruct bus stops, and engage the private sector. In accordance with instructions, the implementation of measures on this front will be studied on site, and every three months the councils of people’s deputies will attend to reports from the heads of the transport system and set specific tasks. It was stressed that the legislation in this area does not meet today’s requirements and needs to be improved.