How accessibility to public transport has changed

Who in Russia makes public transport accessible to everyone?

Photo: Sergey Vedyashkin/Moscow Agency

Who needs a barrier-free environment

In the second half of the 20th century, the concept of accessible environments and universal design emerged, the goal of which is to minimize or completely eliminate physical, sensory and cognitive barriers to the way people move through urban space.
The concept of accessible urban environments is usually associated with the needs of people with disabilities. In fact, there are many more people in dire need of it: pregnant women, mothers with strollers, small children, elderly people. In general, this category includes everyone whose lifestyle or temporary needs suffer from various kinds of obstacles: cyclists, skaters, runners, pedestrians with large luggage, foreigners (they have a language barrier), etc. By and large, All city residents enjoy the benefits of an accessible urban environment. Public transport is the most important link in the accessible environment, especially in a metropolis with its distances and functional specialization of areas remote from each other - residential, business, recreational. In Russia, since 2011, the state target program “Accessible Environment” has been in effect, which has become the first step towards the implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. A prominent place in this program is given to issues of transport accessibility. Also at the regional level, more than 175 laws have been adopted that address this problem.

However, surveys show that Russians with limited mobility still rate the level of accessibility to public transport low. According to respondents, it is least adapted to the needs of people with disabilities.

It is no secret that the financial resources of Russian regions vary greatly. If Moscow spends 1.2 billion rubles a year on accessible environments, then, for example, in the Penza region only 3.8 million rubles have been allocated for these needs in 2022. It is not surprising that Moscow leads in terms of barrier-free transport. Progress in ground transport is especially noticeable: currently 96% of buses, 84% of trolleybuses and 58% of trams have a low floor and are equipped to accommodate passengers with limited mobility. But low-floor rolling stock is also gradually appearing on routes in other cities.

One of the reasons why this became possible is the reorientation of Russian automakers to produce models that meet the requirements of an accessible environment, which at the same time are significantly cheaper than foreign cars of this class. For example, the low-floor LiAZ-6213 is 2.5 times cheaper than its Western counterparts.

Who produces low-floor public transport in Russia

The first Russian-made low-floor bus was the PAZ-3237, which was produced from 2002 to 2014 by Pavlovsky Automobile. It was not entirely convenient for megalopolises and large cities - it was too small, two-door, with only 54 seats, of which only 17 were seats. But for small towns the PAZ has become a real godsend.

In 2004, Likinsky) released Russia's first large low-floor bus LiAZ-5292, which regularly ran along the streets of Russian cities, was perfectly modified and, in the end, turned into the capital's first electric bus.

In 2005, the Trolza-5265.0 trolleybus was introduced in Engels, which became a real international hit - low-floor, roomy, suitable even for intercity travel: 40 of these vehicles run between Simferopol and Yalta, along the world's longest intercity trolleybus route. “Trolza” goes not only in Russia, but also in Ukraine, and also in Argentina. However, the days of trolleybuses are passing - on August 24, 2022, dismantling of the trolleybus infrastructure began in Moscow. Trolleybuses are being replaced by more economical and mobile electric buses not only in the capital: last year trolleybuses disappeared from the streets of Perm, and in the near future this may happen in Crimea.

In 2022, low-floor Vityaz trams manufactured by PC Transport Systems appeared on routes in Moscow and St. Petersburg. This tram has a modern design and meets the highest standards of quality and safety. Today, four hundred “Vityaz” vehicles make life easier for citizens with limited mobility.

Low-floor minibuses

World practice shows that minibuses are still needed in both large and small cities. They are more maneuverable on cramped streets, more cost-effective in fluctuating traffic conditions, and allow regular service at short intervals to be maintained when passenger traffic is reduced due to seasonal or other factors (such as due to the pandemic this year). And where passenger traffic is constantly low - in small towns, in rural areas - they have virtually no alternative.

Low-floor minibuses appeared in Russia not so long ago and until recently were represented mainly by foreign models, which most regions cannot afford. Since 2016, GAZ Group has been producing the Vector NEXT small-class bus, which in most modifications has a low-floor platform in the rear section. And this year GAZ presented the GAZelle City minibus, similar to modern low-floor products of the European automobile industry. For example, the Mercedes Sprinter City 35 has a similar design: a low floor level, a double remote door and the same passenger capacity - 22 people. The advantages of the GAZelle City are not limited to a low floor: the air suspension provides an additional lowering of the floor to the level of the curb, the bus has a folding ramp (ramp) and a spacious storage area equipped to accommodate a wheelchair user. The manufacturer states that GAZelle City is designed in full compliance with the requirements of the Accessible Environment program. Already this fall, new “gazelles” will appear on the streets of Naberezhnye Chelny: the bus fleet will be replenished with 50 such minibuses. Individual copies have already entered the routes of St. Petersburg, the Moscow region, Saratov, Stavropol, Vladivostok, Kaliningrad, Perm and Kemerovo.

Natalya Pletnikova, Head of Sales Development Department, Modern Transport Technologies Group of Companies (distributor of the Gorky Automobile Plant)

After the redivision of the passenger market in the 1990s, most transportation was carried out by minibuses with an all-metal body, that is, vans adapted for passenger transportation. We brought to the market buses with a frame structure, created specifically for passenger transportation - we worked out the technology for their production, strengthened the rear axle, developed an air suspension and, by connecting all the components, we got a modern product. GAZelle City is not inferior to small buses on the streets of European capitals in terms of quality, design, and spirit.

It is more difficult to implement barrier-free principles in Soviet-built subways. For example, the Moscow metro was built without taking into account the needs of citizens with limited mobility, and it has not yet been possible to fully adapt it for them. New stations and the MCC are being built with elevators and lifts, but there are no such elevators in the city center and are not yet expected. Since 2013, the metro has operated a Passenger Mobility Center, that is, an escort service for people with disabilities, the services of which can be used by pre-order. In general, Russia lags behind developed countries in terms of barrier-freeness, but I would like to believe that many local transformations, public and private initiatives will someday come together to create a puzzle of a truly accessible urban environment for all.

Prepared by Valery Abramov

Face to order

We are accustomed to the fact that models of cars and passenger transport are easily recognized by their appearance.
With modern trams this trick often doesn’t work. The fact is that tram cars, being low-volume products, are produced only for specific orders. Cities themselves choose the appearance of vehicles - their paint scheme, as well as the type of front mask. Each manufacturer has a set of different design solutions for the same model, so the same “faces” of trams in different cities are extremely rare. If you don’t know in advance and don’t look for the nameplate, you can determine the model of a particular car only by checking its layout and the type of side sections with already known analogues. The interiors of tram cars can also differ greatly - due to changes in the color and shape of the finishing panels, the type and upholstery of seats, the configuration of handrails, the use of different lighting fixtures, etc.

In the photo: Alstom Citadis 302 tram in the French city of Valenciennes. This is a car from the same line as the Parisian Alstom Citadis 402. As they say, the difference is obvious.

Alternatives[edit]

Many bus rapid transit systems use level boarding, using high-deck buses stopping at "station" style bus stops. Specially raised curb sections can also be used to provide accessibility with less low-floor models, although this is more expensive for the operator and is only attractive for regularly busy scheduled routes. For infrequent routes or routes with hail and ride areas, or for demanding traffic, raised curbs will only be possible at the end points.

Some transit agencies have refused to order low-floor buses at all, such as New Jersey Transit and MUNI, due to terrain conditions in their service area. DART continues to favor high-floor buses. Although New York City Transit operates 40-foot low-floor buses, it initially refused to order the low-floor buses, namely the D60LF, from New Flyer after the D60HF, a high-floor model, was discontinued mid-delivery. [ citation needed

] However, they showed off both the D60LF and the NovaBus LFSA, the latter of which they decided to order.

Oceania [edit]

Australia[edit]

Brisbane[edit]

In Brisbane, all TransLink buses are low-floor design. A small number of higher-capacity articulated low-floor buses are used to service southern city highways.

Sydney[edit]

In Sydney, routes can be served by both high-floor and low-floor buses. Selected routes may be designated specifically for low entry buses, which are considered wheelchair accessible routes. A recently created low-entry bus network is the Metrobus system.

Links[edit]

Schaller, Bruce; Dana Lowell; Kenneth R. Stewart (May–June 1998). "MTA New York Transit Study Shows What Customers Want from Low-Floor Buses". Schaller Consulting. Retrieved April 29, 2009.
"Volvo Buses India".
Agency (January 20, 2010). "East Delhi's Next BRT Corridor: Dixita". Indian Express
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Bhatnagar, Gaurav Vivek (25 September 2007). "First new low-floor bus for DTC has arrived". Hindu
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Japanese "ノーステップバス"
UK Government. Archived August 7, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
Transport for you
BBC
Jump up ↑
King, Rolland D. (1994). Low-floor transit buses: a synthesis of transit practice (PDF) (Report). Transportation Research Board. ISBN 0-309-05321-8. Retrieved December 12, 2022.
Melanithia, Michael; Henke, Cliff (25 August 2008). "High Deck Buses Worth Another Look". Metro magazine
. Retrieved December 12, 2022.