Public Transport Overhaul to Start

The scheme to streamline Iran’s public transportation will be launched soon, based on a deal to overhaul age-old buses and taxis in metropolises, a deputy interior minister said.
During a press conference held in Tehran on Friday, Mehdi Jamalinejad added that the deal for overhauling 5,000 buses was signed by Plan and Budget Organization, mayors of 68 cities and Omid Entrepreneurship Fund in November 2020, IRNA reported.
“In the first step, Iran Khodro [IKCO] has agreed to overhaul 3,000 buses and supply spare parts for the transportation sector,” he said.
As per the deal, OEF will pay cheap loans worth 2.24 billion rials ($8,500) to each owner of a dilapidated bus 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 are expected to be announced later.
“Municipalities can also receive fiscal aid from a total of 900 billion rials [$3.4 million] specified for the restoration of public transportation in the 2019-20 budget bill,” Jamalinejad said.