Frequency in public transport routes to be increased – The challenge of May 4th

Protection masks will be used in order to enter public transport, revealed yesterday in the daily press conference by Professor Sotiris Tsiodras. As he said, the committee was clear, saying that there is a strong recommendation for the use of a mask, which will now become mandatory in certain areas. The mask, according to the committee, “should be used as a mandatory measure in public transport and other busy areas.

The Deputy Minister of Transport, Mr. Giannis Kefalogiannis, will announce in more detail the measures that will take effect on May 4, after the speech of the Greek PM, with more specifications as how the tickets will be checked, if the gates will remain open during rush hours, how to ensure that the occupancy does not exceed 50%, etc.

As it became known, after the request of the PM, scenarios have been prepared by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport for the operation of the means of public transport that include, landmark dates as well, a gradual restoration of the regularity in transport will take place.

The first challenge is to increase Athens Metro’s routes during peak hours and reduce waiting time, which is currently about 7.5 minutes. Today, about 550-600 buses and trolleys are in Athens roads, and the goal is to gradually reach 1,000 vehicles that were circulating the streets of the city before the outbreak of the virus. For Thessaloniki, the goal is to reach 350 buses while the tender for the lease of about 180 buses is immediately activated.

The idea of extending opening times in the morning in order to avoid congestion on public transport is also on the table. Yesterday, Athens Chamber of Commerce requested from the stores to open at 10 a.m.

The trains

The first goal for the trains will be to increase the number of routes, as due to the measures, about 10% of the total transportation services are carried out.

TRAINOSE has, since the beginning of the pandemic, strictly enforced protocols and on the trains, the staff must wear gloves and masks, while its use is also discussed for passengers too.

Antibacterial gels can be found everywhere in the trains, newspapers and magazines have been removed, the food sold is only packaged and the windows on all trains, where possible, are unlocked.

At the same time, electronic ticketing is applied and extended to minimize contact, while passengers are encouraged to use cards and not money.