The Underground in Bucharest on the Right Way

On March 18, the current year the minister of Public Works, Transport and Housing, Mr. Miron Mitrea, has been up dated with the unfolding of the construction works performed on the underground railway section Nicolae Grigorescu - the marginal section, on this occasion being presented, in IMGB station other two trains.

The underground network from Bucharest extends on 63 Km of double line, divided on four main sections, where there operate 52 trains.
As there is already known, besides the existing network, the following underground sections are still in various stages (of proposal or execution): Aurel Vlaicu - Gara Baneasa - Cartier Baneasa - Aeroport Baneasa - Supermarket - Privighetorilor - Otopeni Centura, 1 Mai - Pajura - Bazilescu - Zarea, Universitate - Cismigiu - Hasdeu - Eroilor - Academia Militara - Orizont - Favorit - Drumul Taberei - Parc Drumul Taberei - Romancierilor - Targu Neamt - Raul Domanei - Ghencea.

The visit of the minister of Public Works, Transports and Housing, Mr. Miron Mitrea, has been unfolded on the site situated on Nicolae Grigorescu - 1 Decembrie 1918 - Policolor - Marginal line underground section. In this area, the physical stage of the execution of the project is the following: the primary structure - 90% water evacuation - 100% the consolidation and the finishing of the constructions - 25%, final packing - 30%, technological equipment - 7%, the value of the works performed up to March 1, 2003 being of 13.15 million Euro, from an overall amount of 54 million. The termination of the construction is stipulated for the next year, and the equipment and the putting into operation are going to be finalized in 2005.
The second objective of Mr. Miron Mitrea has been the departure from the underground station IMGB, the place where other two of the 18 trains purchased from the Swedish company Bombardier Transportation have started their operation.
The minister has also taken advantage of the fact that one of the trains was just leaving and he traveled to Piata Victoria station, because he had to attend the government meeting from Victoria palace. The two train sets, assembled at Electroputere Craiova are joining the other two which are already operating on the Main Section 2, other two being still in testing stage; up to the end of the year, the entire flux of operation from Main Section 2 is going to be covered by all modern 18 train sets included in the respective lot.
At the end of the action, the minister has declared to the press: "Currently, we have in execution stage two sections. It is about the section towards Bucurestii Noi and about the one linking Nicolae Grigorescu station to the Marginal Line. The adjoin 1 from the Main Section 4, Nicolae Grigorescu - Marginal Line, which is in a quite advanced stage. I am satisfied of the current stage of the works on this site. Pursuant to the endowment of the tunnels and of the stations with the tracks, equipment, power sources there will be put into operation the trains. Practically, Grigorescu 2 station continues the Main Section 4 to Policolor and further on to the Marginal Line. This way, we have submitted the necessary documentation to the European Bank for Investments and we have made the firsts steps in order to finance the new main underground sections, which supply the underground transport and to Drumul Taberei neighborhood.
Besides these programs we also have in development stage another one for getting investments for the introduction of new trains. Today, we put into operation other two train sets, which are going to operate on main Section 2, IMGB - Pipera. They are assembled in Romania, at Electroputere Craiova, and I consider a real success the fact that we succeed to assemble trains of such a technicality in our country. The monitoring is much more efficient, the trains are visibly improved. The life duration of these trains is for over 40 years and the structure without compartments increases the safety in transport and to the antisocial elements. In the train there are two guarding persons. We would like them to operate on the main Section 4 every three minutes. Moreover, the personnel from Metrorex will display in the stations and inside the trains a telephone number for suggestions of improvement of the operation conditions. I ensure the passengers that we will take into account their suggestions, and at the new trains, which are going to be put into operation, there will be many other improvements. In order to increase the profitability we also intend to transform the current overhaul contracts for old trains in purchase contracts for new trains and, presently, we are in negotiations on this matter with EBI". We have improved the occasion with the presence of Mr. Marius Lepadat joining the minister, the general director of Metrorex, in order to find out if, besides the implementation of the new 18 trains on Main Section 2 - representing, obviously, a qualitative leap in transport services by underground offered to the inhabitants of Bucharest -, there will be also other "events" aiming at improving the traveling conditions by underground. His answer was as it follows: "There are funds granted by the European Bank of Investments; we are sure that the financing for the modernization of the other underground trains (as it was approved the initial fund), yet, pursuant to an analysis performed by the Ministry of Transports, there has been considered that this solution would be the best and that there would be more profitable and there would be increased the life duration if we buy the trains. In this moment, we are working at a study for EBI where we are trying to change the modernization solution of 40 trains by purchasing new others, because they have a longer life duration than the ones that have been modernized. So we have 120 million Euro, a loan approved by EBI, co-financed 50% by the state. From this money we are going to purchase 20 new trains. There is not sufficient yet, together with the 18 that have been already purchased and other six additional, we are going to cover all the requirements of the Main Sections 1 and 2, summing up almost 89% from the number of passengers of the underground from Bucharest. For the main sections 3 and 4 we will use the old trains and, according as the obtaining of the finances, we will also try to interfere here. For the time being, we are going to get out of order some of the oldest trains - and we will have this way spare parts for the others. Therefore, we have two main sections "covered" with new and modern trains, and for the main sections 3 and 4 we are going to use, for the time being, old trains. Anyway, we are hoping that we will have up to the spring of the next year on the Main Section 2 24 trains and the traffic will be performed at every three minutes. In the same time, if the European Bank of Investments will give us the OK for purchasing new trains, I hope that up to the fall we are going to organize the international auction."
The second question that we have asked Mr. Lepadat was: "How important is for the inhabitants of Bucharest the development of the underground network; especially, the extension of Nicolae Grigorescu - Marginal Line section?"
We have found out that there was absolutely necessary because: " The underground sections achieved before '89 represented a "black hole" for Bucharest, because there was the danger of ramming the tunnel. It is about the two big tunnels, the one from 1 Mai to Zarea - which is still flooded, and Nicolae Grigorescu to the Margin Section. In a first stage, the money obtained from EBI, co-financed by the state, have been allocated for securing these tunnels. Up to the present time, the tunnels have been already packed on Nicolae Grigorescu underground section, and now we are in water evacuation stage at the one from 1 Mai and Zarea. At Nicolae Grigorescu the works are performed "at barren" and we are in the building stage of the stations and at the fortification of the constructions.

We had beside us all the time international consultants, who were monitoring the state of the ground, and have also provided solutions; I can say that we have taken advantage of the experience of the greatest specialists from the world in the field of tunnels.
The following stage is the achievement of a destination study, a study submitted to EBI, which will argument the necessity to put into operation this underground section. We have drawn up the study, previously to this, but now the situation has changed - ANL builds a neighborhood nearby… for the time being, yet, we will achieve only the underground section up to Policolor, because, for a while, the station Linia de Centura will be out of traffic, so the respective costs will not be justified, but we will secure the tunnel and we will preserve it. With respect to the Gara de Nord - 1 Mai underground section there is not a satisfactorily traffic either; that's why we have extended the route up to Laromet - Zarea, the studies performed predicting an increase of fourth times the passengers number. In exchange, on the Main Section 5 is estimated to be at around 100,000 passengers per day, figure representing a third party of what we have in our current network (350,000 passengers). We are hoping that all the projects we have presented you here to come true in relatively short time, so that the inhabitants of Bucharest to be able to travel better and faster."

Silvia Mirea