Transport Minister against passengers’ transportation in reequipped minibuses

Minister of Transports and Road Administration, Miron Gagauz, considers there is no reason for modifying the Government decision that came into force on 8 August currently, through which the Government intends to exclude the reequipped minibuses from public circulation within one year. According to him, the Government’s decision was received positively by all specialized institutions in the field and there are no reasons for its abrogation. Gagauz mentioned that at present the Urban Bus and Trolleybus fleets have been renovated, thus the elimination of the reequipped minibuses will not create inconveniences to passengers. At the same time, the minister emphasized that nowhere in the world the passengers are transported in reequipped vehicles. “Nobody gives us the right to put at risk the passengers’ security”, concluded the minister. According to the decision, the minibuses made in 1991-92 are to be eliminated by the end of this year, and the other minibuses – by the end of next year. For two days, the minibuses from Chisinau municipality have been stopped for several hours, as a protest against the named intention of the authorities. Protests have been organized on Tuesday and Wednesday, 24 and 25 October, between 10.00PM and 12.00PM. Transporters claim that in case the authorities continue to ignore their requests, they will reserve the right to organize protest meetings and rallies. Head of the municipal Public Transport Division, Veaceslav Tarna stated on Tuesday, at an operative meting of the City Hall that the municipality will request from the Government to examine the situation again and to make a decision favorable for the reequipped car owners. According to Tarna, during the technical overhaul in October, 1380 of 1656 minibuses were accepted for the activity of conveyance.