Specific actions in transport systems supportive of COVID-19 measures

By project REGIO-MOB

Published on 02 September 2022

Romania

Sud-Vest Oltenia

Râmnicu Vâlcea

About this good practice

The COVID-19 pandemic poses great challenges for public transportation systems worldwide and forces policy makers to make decisions in the context of uncertainty.
ETA S.A. is a public passenger transport operator, subordinated to the Local Council of Râmnicu Vâlcea and its main activity is to ensure the public transport of people in the municipality of Râmnicu Vâlcea.
In order to reduce the COVID-19 contagion risk in public transportation, including the occupancy levels of vehicles and stations, the exposure time (trip length) and the application of enhanced hygiene standards (including sanitization and ventilation), Râmnicu Vâlcea Municipality together with the public operator decided to extend the transport capacity for some bus lines either by using larger buses or by increasing the frequency of the buses. This comes together with limitation of the occupancy rate in a bus to 40%.
As a pilot measure there is a proposal to use minibuses to transport pupils in parallel on congested routes.
The municipality play a key role in creating the policy frameworks for safe active mobility, promoting the event A day without a car, the project "Increasing urban pedestrian and bicycle mobility" which will arrange 46.33 km of bike lanes, 8 bicycle parking lots, 5 centers for bicycle rental,15 km of promenades.

Resources needed

ETA S.A. has a rolling stock of 47 means of transport, of which 38 buses and 9 minibuses. In 2021, the ETA SA bus fleet was completed with 7 articulated buses of 18 meters long and a maximum of 162 people capacity. This means lower operating costs and lower carbon emissions per passenger

Evidence of success

This was a soft measure applied in a pandemic context. The transport operator used enhanced hygiene standards (including sanitization and ventilation), limited the occupancy rate in a bus to 40%.

Potential for learning or transfer

This good practice has a high transferability potential and it is very relevant for public transport in general. It can promote a safe and sustainable transport system in the short term and pave the way for healthier and more effective transport options for all users.