Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Following the directive of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, Tashkent plans to purchase an additional 1,000 buses in 2025. This was stated on 11 January by the Minister of Transport, Ilkhom Makhkamov, in an interview with the Uzbekistan 24 TV channel.

It should be noted that in October 2023, Tashkent’s city administration signed an agreement with the Chinese company BYD for the purchase of 2,000 K9UD eBus electric buses. Additionally, BYD plans to set up electric bus assembly in the capital.

The Minister also reported that by the end of 2024, 675 information kiosks will be installed at bus stops for the purchase of single-use tickets with QR codes. These kiosks began appearing on January 1, after cash payments for travel were abolished in Tashkent. Now, passengers can pay for trips using transport cards, the ATTO app, contactless bank cards, payment apps, and QR tickets.

Makhkamov stated that by 1 February, a draft resolution for the development of public transport in Tashkent will be developed, and a new program is expected to be adopted.

The Ministry of Transport clarified that there are currently 5,100 information kiosks in Tashkent, with 769 installed at bus stops. After the ban on cash payments on buses from January 1 to 10, passenger traffic increased by 43.5%, and revenues grew by 36%.

By the end of 2024, the bus fleet in Tashkent will increase to 1,901 units, which is 28% more than in 2022 (1,485 buses). In the past two years, waiting times at bus stops have decreased from 22 minutes to 10−12 minutes.