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Tallinn transport co TLT to acquire 200 new natural gas buses

BC, Tallinn, 28.12.2018.Print version
The Tallinn public transport company Tallinna Linnatranspordi AS (TLT) announced a public procurement with which it will purchase 100 new city buses with the option of purchasing another 100 natural gas buses in the framework of the same contract, informed LETA/BNS.

The bus manufacturers qualifying for the procurement will be determined in March and TLT is hoping to confirm the winning bid of the tender in April 2019.


"With the largest bus tender in Tallinn's history, we will replace the oldest portion of the buses in use today, with which the fleet of buses will become significantly more comfortable for the passengers and much more efficient for us as the carrier," chairman of the management board of TLT, Deniss Borodits, said. "Thanks to the new gas buses, we will save approximately two million euros per year on fuel and repair costs."


Borodits added that according to the company's new strategy, all old diesel buses will be replaced in the next few years with city buses using natural gas as fuel. "After the arrival of the first 100 new buses, the average age of the fleet will improve by four years and the impact on the urban environment will be similar to the removal of approximately 1,000 cars from the streets of Tallinn," he said, adding that the newer buses will also bring in more public transport users in the capital. 


"When taking into consideration the longer perspective, we are working to ensure that by 2025, there are no diesel buses on the streets of Tallinn, which in addition to better public transport will also contribute toward a cleaner urban environment," Borodits said. According to the TLT management board chair, altogether 300 new natural gas buses will be acquired over the next five years and initial preparations for the implementation of electric buses are underway.


Starting from the second half of 2019, the company will acquire altogether 60 normal-sized and 40 articulated buses, which make up more than a fifth of the 469 buses used by TLT. When it comes to the new buses, special attention will be paid on the convenience and security of passengers and the servicing of residents with special needs will also be taken into consideration. All new buses will be equipped with internal and external cameras and passenger counters, which will be purchased with a separate procurement.


With 469 buses, 70 trams and 51 trolleybuses, TLT services more than 130 mln passengers per year in Tallinn. The company employs a workforce of 1,800 and services 62 bus routes, four tram routes as well as four trolleybus routes.






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