Re-introducing Trams in Novi Sad

Novi Sad City Hall hosted a press conference on introducing electricity-powered means of transport. On the initiative by the Mayor of Novi Sad, a special commission met to conduct the study in 2010. The commission consists of Milomir Veselinović, PhD, Aleksandar Jevđenić Msc, Head of the City Traffic Administration Radivoj Pavlov, Srbislav Gugleta dipl.ing, Zorica Ninić-Stupar dipl.ing, Gradimir stefanović dipl.ing, and Branislav Vesnić.

- The City of Novi Sad has been toying with the idea of introducing city trams since 1991, which is when the first study was conducted. The old study, however, is rather outdated, since the city grew and developed significantly, new developmental plans were drawn, etc. Traffic congestions and air pollution called for a new study to be conducted. The commission will continue with its work, and the residents will eventually have the final say - said Mr Pavličić, who also pointed out that many European cities re-introduced trams as one of the most environmental-friendly and efficient means of public transport.

- Increase of the population defines the need for further public transport development. Our main guideline should be the quality of service and customer-oriented design, which requires a particular holistic approach to engineering - said Mr Milomir Veselinović, head of the commission. A survey conducted showed that over 80% of 20,000 interviewed residents are strongly support in favor of the idea. According to the study, the new tram-system should be introduced in 4 consecutive stages, which should take around 20 years. The number of required trams is estimated at around 25 (till the year 2030) and 50 (till the year 2050). All vehicles should have a capacity of at least 160 persons. The system also requires a depot of approximately 15-25,000 m2, which should be located within the already existing PUE Novi Sad Public Transport garage premises.

- The number of daily users of public transport is decreasing. Since 1995, it has dropped for over 21%. It is of utmost importance to end this tendency by introducing some of the environmental-friendly cutting-edge technologies and efficient means of transport. It is equally important to decrease the daily car influx to the city, since they represent the greatest source of pollution and traffic congestion - said Mr Aleksandar Jevđenić
The study also implies a new system of incentive parking ('park-and-ride'). As Mr Pavličić notes, only the first phase of the project costs approximately 90 million EUR, which inevitably requires the City to look for a strategic partnership.

Novi Sad, September 7th 2011