Tallinn to invest tens of millions in new public transport vehicles, elevating public transit
This week, the Tallinn City Government submitted a supplementary budget to the City Council for approval, which will increase the city's total budget by 9.5 million euros. The budget includes investments for renewing the public transport fleet, paving the way for tenders to purchase 10 trams, 30 gas buses, and 40 battery-operated trolleys, as well as for designing trolley infrastructure.
Deputy Mayor Kristjan Järvan emphasized that increasing the share of environmentally sustainable public transport vehicles is a key priority for Tallinn. "Electric buses have already arrived and will be seen on the streets starting from early June. The first new trams will arrive soon, and over the coming years, we will replace the entire trolleybus fleet. At the same time, we are exploring opportunities to apply for EU funding to purchase environmentally sutainable public transport and develop the infrastructure. We are taking another step towards ensuring that the impact of transportation on the city's living environment is minimal and that the public transport in the city will be emission-free by 2035, as set out in our mobility plan," Järvan said.A budget of 35 million euros has been allocated for the purchase of ten trams. The new trams, arriving in about three years, will meet the needs of the expanding network towards Pelguranna and Liivalaia Street.
For the acquisition of gas buses, 12 million euros has been allocated. Thirty new gas buses are expected to arrive around mid-next year and will replace older trolleys, with the first ones being retired this autumn.
Tallinn also continues to develop its trolley network. Over the next 5-6 years, the plan is to reconstruct the trolley infrastructure and acquire battery-operated trolleys, which, unlike current trolleys, can cover distances in urban areas without a contact network. The plan includes purchasing 40 new battery-operated trolleys: 22 articulated trolleys (18 meters long) and 18 standard trolleys (12 meters long). Approximately 29 million euros have been allocated for acquiring battery-operated trolleys, and 27.6 million euros for designing the trolley infrastructure and the first phase of construction.
These investments have been added to the budget with a total value that provides the basis for organizing tenders for the purchase of public transport vehicles.