According to the authors of the concept, the capital's fiscal potential in financing city transport projects over the next 20 years is 60-80 billion hryvnias. These funds will be enough to lay 21 kilometers of underground metro lines.
"If we build only one new branch of the metro in 20 years, it will not solve anything, and new transport problems will appear before we react. The alternative is light rail transport LRT and high-speed bus corridors BRT", Lev Ivanets, an expert in the field of urban mobility planning, is confident.
Presentation of the "Great Transport Circle" concept
BRT is the cheapest type of public transport to install in the city. But these buses look completely different from Kyiv's "Bohdany" minibuses. Comfortable BRT cars, 18-24 meters long, can accommodate up to 230 passengers and move along a dedicated priority lane. The perspective of route "Bogdans" as a morally outdated, dangerous, uncomfortable transport that pollutes the environment is a garbage dump.
A modern tram is a car 54-56 meters long that moves along a dedicated track with priority at all intersections
We will have to explain to the people of Kyiv what a high-speed tram is, says Dmytro Bespalov, an expert in the field of transport modeling, director of the company "Pro Mobility": "If the word "tram" brings to mind the Tatras, which travels through Podol, thunders and sometimes burns, then in the European sense - this is not a tram. A modern tram is a car 54-56 meters long, moving along a dedicated track with priority at all intersections, inclusive and accessible to all population groups. You can call it a light rail transport or an underground metro. And the thing that travels along Podol – call it a rail car."
The "Great Transport Circle" implementation plan will cost Kyiv 48 billion hryvnias. But at the same time, public transport passengers' time savings will amount to 4,9 billion hryvnias per year
The construction of dedicated transport corridors for BRT and LRT, according to the concept of the "Great Transport Circle", will be accompanied by the reconstruction of 125 kilometers of streets with the re-laying of engineering networks. In addition to solving transport problems, the implementation of the concept will reduce CO2 emissions by 73%, i.e. by 53 tons per year.
"As a source of funding, not only the city budget is offered, but also the state budget, including within the framework of the "Big Construction" program, as well as loan money, funds from private investors," explains Oleksandr Rak, an analyst of city data, a specialist in the field of urban mobility planning and organization of road traffic and passenger transportation.
By 2030, Kyiv may rank third in the world in terms of the number of traffic jams
In order for the plans of the initiative public group to come true, it is necessary to make changes to the current General Plan of the capital and the draft General Plan, conduct negotiations between the city government and the Cabinet of Ministers, MFIs and private investors, approve the Roadmap for phased implementation and make changes to the city's target programs and plans.
The authors of the concept emphasize that the plans for the construction of bus and tram transport corridors are not a competitor to the development of the subway. The metro remains a fast and convenient mode of transport, experts admit. But it should not be a monopoly in the field of public transportation, because it can no longer withstand the load. It is about creating an alternative.
You can read more about the arguments of the authors of the concept and detailed calculations at video presentations on YouTube.