CMC rejects again the law on increasing transportation tariffs

The Chisinau Municipal Council (CMC) has rejected on Tuesday, July 11 with a majority of votes, the project of decision concerning the increase of tariffs in the municipal public transport. The reason invoked was that before the examination of the mentioned question, it was approved a new calculation methodology of tariffs in the public transport. Thus, the increase of tariffs has to be conformed to the new methodology. The councilors have stated that the decision project concerning the increase of tariffs should be presented for examination in the framework of the next CMC session. They have requested to present for the next session three separate decision projects for each of the public transport means: trolleybus, bus and mini-bus. The Chief of the General Direction on Economy, Reforms and Patrimonial Relations, Valentina Merla, has told reporters that the methodology is establishing the criteria that the transporters have to meet in order to solicit the adjustment of tariffs from the Municipal Council. According to her, first of all, there will be taken into account the fact that the activity transporters should be efficient and profitable, to be able to assure the retrieval of financial means spent on the purchase of transport units. In the same time, the methodology plans that the transport services should be of a high quality. The cited source has specified that the adjustment of tariffs will be justified in the case of increasing the price to fuel means and in accordance with other subjective factors in the field of commercial units' of public transport services activity. Merla has mentioned that, according to the estimative calculations made by the Direction of Electrical Transport corresponding to the new methodology, the costs for a trip by trolleybus in 2005 was of 1.46 lei and, according to the activity programs for the current year – 1.84 lei. The Urban Bus Fleet has calculated that the cost price for a trip with this means of transport in 2005 was of 4.81 lei and in 2006 – 5.58 lei. The cited source has specified that such calculations have not been made for mini-busses. The independent councilor Mihai Roscovan has previously declared for Info-Prim Neo that the methodology includes clear rules: the operators will be able to demand the increase of tariffs only if being economically motivated. In the situation when CMC will consider the tariffs as being "unbearable" for the population, subvention mechanisms could be applied for the urban public transport, as well as for the socially disadvantaged categories. The transporters have previously suggested the increase of tariffs up to 1.5 lei for a trip by trolleybus, up to 2 lei - for a trip by bus and the establishment of a fee of 3 lei for a trip by mini-bus.