Bucharest: Public consultation for the expansion of the tram network
Bucharest City Hall has launched in public consultation a project for the new General Urban Plan (PUG), that includes the largest expansion of the tram network since the Revolution, according to the Metrou Ușor Association. The route, subject to public debate, is the main traffic ring and has a length of 11km between Giurgiului road and Basarabiei boulevard (the project details are available here).
On 13 June, the City Hall of the Romanian Capital published the documents for the initiation of the public consultation stage of the project to expand the tram network on the Southeast Median Ring. The initiation phase ended on 28 June. The route under debate is between Bd. Bessarabia and Șos. Giurgiului, which is 11km long and crosses the arteries of Bd. Nicolae Grigorescu, Str. Iuliu Hatieganu, Sos. Vitan-Bârzești, Str. Sgt. Ion Iriceanu, Str. Turnu Măgurele and Str. Luke. The route mirrors line 41 in the west of the Capital, also located on the middle ring. The Metrou Ușor Association has campaigned for years for the implementation of this project.
The Metrou Ușor Association proposes to maintain green surfaces by adopting green-track technology with grassy rails, where possible, to avoid the decrease of green surfaces, to increase the efficiency, comfort, safety and accessibility of public transport and to ease the correspondence between the future tram and other means of transport. This could be done by keeping the tram at ground level in intersections with Bd. Metalurgiei and Sos. Berceni, and placing the tram platforms next to the metro stations entrances.
Another benefit of keeping the tram at ground level is to facilitate the correspondence between the tram and the metro at the Aparătorii Patriei (M2) station, with the possibility of creating direct pedestrian access passages, in order to ensure passengers’ safety at this public transport exchange node.
The association also proposes the same green-track technology for the Nicolae Grigorescu overpass (bridge over the Dâmbovița River).
Finally, a tender has been launched for the modernisation of line 5 (approximately 45 km of the old line) and the bids submitted are currently under evaluation.