UZ-3000 program to launch in December for four months - board chairman
The UZ-3000 social initiative will start operating in December this month, will operate during the low season, approximately four months, but the detailed mechanics of the program are still being worked out, said Oleksandr Pertsovsky, Chairman of the Board of JSC Ukrzaliznytsia (Ukrainian Railways – UZ).
"During a period of low demand for passenger transportation, Ukrzaliznytsia has 200,000-250,000 unfilled seats per month on long-distance trains. And it is these that it proposes to use for the social program," he said at a joint press conference with Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko and members of the government on Monday evening.
According to Pertsovsky, there are also plans to focus this program on passengers from front-line areas.
The Chairman of the Board added that additional services and flexible pricing will be introduced in parallel for those who are willing to pay - in the categories of SV, 1st class, and international trains. The corresponding additional revenues will cover the cost of trips "per kilometer" so as not to increase the need for state funding, although they still will not cover the need for subsidizing passenger transportation.
Pertsovsky noted that the UZ-3000 program is being rolled out in parallel with the start of the system compensation of the real cost of passenger transportation. This will improve the situation for the railway, and at the same time maintain the accessibility of travel for all Ukrainians, he assured.
"The operation of passenger trains is subsidized by the state, as in most European countries, so it is important that they operate as efficiently as possible and as many passengers as possible can travel all year round. Supporting passenger transportation is taxpayers' money, so they should feel this effect," Svyrydenko said.
She noted that the budget financing of Ukrzaliznytsia in a difficult period is taxpayers' money, so citizens should receive support from the company.
"We are creating an opportunity to travel under the UZ-3000 program and fill places that usually remain vacant... At the same time, it is necessary to understand that UAH 16 billion of support for the next year is not equal to a 3,000-kilometer program," she said.
Pertsovsky added that without budget funding to cover Ukrzaliznytsia's costs, it is necessary to increase the freight tariff by 60-70%, but then the business will switch to other types of transport, because many people already deliver goods by car. He explained that the war affected Ukrzaliznytsia's income: the closure of mines, the outflow of metallurgy, and a decrease in export prices.
