A major tender for the procurement of urban buses in Athens and Thessaloniki, after more than 15 years, is being prepared by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, ypodomes.com reports.
According to an announcement, technical specifications for the buses are already in public consultation, ending on December 17, 2018. Following the submitted remarks’ evaluation, the auction for the urban buses procurement for the metropolitan areas of Attica and Thessaloniki will follow.
The buses to be supplied will be moving on electric, gas-powered and diesel (Euro VI type). Owner of the project will be the Greek Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport.
As the General Secretary of the Ministry, Mr. Thanos Vourdas, mentioned to ypodomes.com, the aim is for the public international competition to be launched by February. The project’s cost will be about 220m euros (excl. VAT) and will also include the fleet’s maintenance, ensuring that the vehicles will be remaining at a good condition. New buses will be compatible with the telematics and e-ticket services, by default.
Financing of the project, according to the same source, will come from European sources (NSRF), EIB and their delivery will begin 7 months after the signing of the contract. The procurement project will be completed in 18 months for a total of 750 urban buses: 400 will be used in Athens (170 electric, 180 with natural gas and 50 diesel) and 350 for Thessaloniki (150 electric, 150 with natural gas and 50 diesel).
As noted in the Ministry’s announcement: “Modernizing the fleet with modern, enviromentally friendly buses, aims to ensure a better quality service for passengers in Attica and Thessaloniki, with an improved environmental footprint, as part of the transition to a low-emission economy”.
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