The National Coronavirus Headquarters is planning a deal to exchange oil for new buses to streamline the ramshackle public transportation network by the end of the current Iranian year (March 20), First Vice President Es’haq Jahangiri said.
During the inauguration of several urban projects on Saturday attended by Tehran Mayor Pirouz Hanachi and Tehran City Council Mohsen Hashemi, Jahangiri expressed concerns about the metropolis’ public transportation.
He said the danger of Covid-19 infection has added to the long-term public discontent about the deficiency of buses, ILNA reported.
“To help solve the issue, the coronavirus headquarters has authorized relevant officials to import semi- and complete-knocked down buses in exchange for oil without undermining the local production capacity. Therefore, domestic automakers are required to put maximum effort in bus manufacturing,” he added.
Jahangiri said he is dismayed by the daily sight of buses packed with people commuting to their workplace during the pandemic, stressing that “something should be done about this problem as soon as possible”.
Since US President Donald Trump pulled out of the 2015 nuclear deal, Iran has been under tough unilateral sanctions that suspended a major part of its international relations. The limitations disrupted the gradual renewal of the passenger fleet, especially in crowded metropolises.
The most populated Iranian city, Tehran has become notorious for its aging public transportation.
According to Tehran Municipality, out of 5,786 buses operating in Tehran’s transport fleet, 3,585 or 62% are ready to be scrapped.
“Although the state coffers are almost empty, the allocation of participatory bonds has so far helped municipalities to stay afloat,” Jahangiri said.
In October 2020, Tehran City Council ratified a motion allowing TM to raise 40 trillion rials ($160 million) through the issuance of participatory bonds for streamlining public transportation in the current fiscal year.
The vice president said the allocation of last year’s 15 trillion rials ($60 million) bonds is being encashed by the agent bank.
Jahangiri noted that the new decisions on bus import can hopefully remove transportation deficiency in Iran.
*** IKCO Joining TM
In June 2020, major domestic automaker Iran Khodro Company (IKCO) started collaboration with Tehran Municipality by signing a contract worth 4 trillion rials ($16 million) to deliver minibuses and LPG- and CNG-hybrid buses.
“The contract between IKCO and TM has restarted IKCO’s bus production lines after a long-drawn lull,” Mohammad Zali, the CEO of Iran Khodro Diesel, an IKCO subsidiary, said.
Zali noted that the production lines are running at lower capacity to deliver 620 buses and minibuses to the municipality.
“By early November, 40 LPG and diesel buses were inducted into the capital’s transport fleet. Domestic production of the vehicles cuts capital flight and creates jobs for 1,700 people,” he said.
The two sides have also signed a memorandum of understanding to produce 800 more buses by the end of the current Iranian year. The government and TM will line up finance for this initiative.
Speaking to reporters, Tehran Mayor Pirouz Hanachi earlier said Tehran faces huge shortfalls in its public transportation system and the new vehicles will partially fill the gap. He hoped collaborations between TM and the state automaker will expand.
*** Interior Ministry and Renewal Plans
To help renew the passenger fleet in urban areas, the Interior Ministry is planning to add 5,000 new locally-made buses to the public transport system nationwide by March 20.
Toward this end, the ministry has signed a contract with Iran Khodro for the production of 1,000 urban buses.
IKCO’s CEO Farshad Moqimi and Deputy Interior Minister Javad Naserian signed a contract on Tuesday.
Also on Thursday, the ministry signed a deal with the other local automaker SAIPA for manufacturing 1,000 buses.
“The company is committed to fulfilling the contract by March 20,” CEO of SAIPA Javad Soleimani said.
Besides boosting local production, officials have resorted to repairing dilapidated bus fleet as a cost-effective choice to streamline the public transportation system in the Iranian capital.
In early November 2020, Tehran Bus Company and the Industries Ministry agreed to restore 1,000 dilapidated urban buses under a long-term scheme.
CEO of TBC Mahmoud Tarfa said the plan, which initially targets 100 privately-owned buses in the capital, will be implemented as soon as the financial details are determined.
Stressing that only 40 buses were overhauled in the last Iranian year (ended March 19, 2020), the official noted that to compensate for the slow pace of restoration plans and the sluggish addition of new vehicles to the transportation fleet, TBC is making a complementary effort.
Tarfa noted that whenever funds become available, the company repairs and reuses old buses that have been phased out of the fleet in recent years.
“The Interior Ministry has emphasized that the number of buses operating in the metropolis should not decrease. Considering the city’s dense population, it would cause serious disruption to the commutation of many citizens,” he said.
Similarly, the Plan and Budget Organization has started a joint move with mayors of 68 cities and Omid Entrepreneurship Fund to overhaul 5,000 dilapidated urban buses nationwide.
Based on a deal signed in mid-November, the fund will pay cheap loans worth 2.24 billion rials ($8,960) to bus owners. The loans will be offered with a 4% interest rate and a repayment period of five years.
The remaining expenses are to be covered by municipalities and owners. Further details will be announced by the authorities later.
“Of the total number of buses covered by the scheme, 1,700 will be revamped in the capital city of Tehran and Isfahan, 1,600 in Karaj, Ahvaz and Kermanshah, and the rest in other cities,” Hamid Pour-Mohammadi, a PBO deputy, said.
The restoration scheme is expected to improve public transportation services in metropolises, increase the sector’s employment rate and improve ventilation systems that benefit passengers, especially during the Covid-19 outbreak, help curb the suffocating air pollution, increase fuel efficiency and boost transportation safety.
