Dear residents of Odesa!
After a year of deliberation, the Verkhovna Rada has finally approved an important bill regarding humanitarian buses.
This initiative was launched by me in the spring of last year. The bill was quickly drafted by the Ministry of Community Development and received support from the Association of Ukrainian Cities.
What does this mean for Odesa and other Ukrainian communities that previously received buses from international partners?
We are talking about over 350 buses — spacious, comfortable, and with zero emissions, which have been experimentally proven, and are adapted for transporting people with disabilities. For the Odesa community, this means 20 modern Mercedes buses given by our sister cities in 2024, which have been idle in the «Odesmiskelektrotrans» fleet due to legislative restrictions.
The next important step is for the Cabinet to develop a procedure for the use of humanitarian buses. This will legally secure the transport for our municipal enterprise, register it, and allow it to operate on city routes.
At the same time, we will work on finding and training qualified drivers to ensure quality and safety for Odesa residents.
We continue to work hard!