The Infrastructure Ministry of Ukraine is negotiating with the German government about the use of 100 million euro in the framework of the previously reached agreement on granting Ukraine an unrelated financial loan with a total amount of 500 million euro for upgrading suburban electric trains for Ukrzaliznytsya, the ministry’s press service has said.
“It is planned the funds will be used to buy 10-15 new suburban electric trains,” Minister of Infrastructure Volodymyr Omelyan said.
According to him, the ministry intends to organize a tender between the cities on offering the best breakeven concept of using electric trains.
Ukrzaliznytsya complains that commuter trains are unprofitable, but in reality no more than 20 percent of passengers pay for travel, so it is needed to introduce a normal system of payment, control, remove abuses – and loss-making will turn into at least breakeven, and with a normal approach we will be able to see profit,” Omelyan said.
