Public transport passengers in Kazan to be counted

Within a logistics scheme prepared for the Universiade 2013 sporting event in Tatarstan’s capital, the existing passenger traffic will be counted and analysed, told journalists the Kazan Executive Committee transport chief Aidar Abdulkhakov.

Kazan, when devising a new transport plan, conducted a large research into passenger traffic in 2006, he recalled. Designing the logistics scheme for Universiade 2013 has been assigned to the Saint-Petersburg research and development institute for territorial development and transport infrastructure that designed the transport scheme. Besides, the institute is performing a feasibility study for construction and reconstruction of the traffic network in the run-up to the Universiade.

The logistics scheme is to include all the Universiade sports facilities, as well as viewers and sportsmen flows. The precision of the new logistical plan is such that it locates each piece of the city’s transport infrastructure - a tram, metro train, bus or shuttle for competition participants - every 15 minutes during the Universiade. The scheme includes the organisers's special requirements related to evacuating people from sports venues in case of an emergency as well.

To obtain a precise picture of existing passenger traffic in Kazan, passengers on public transport will in the next two weeks be counted. About 500 people, mostly employees at Kazan auto transport companies, as well as students at related higher educational institutions, who have received preliminary instructions and training, will work on buses, trolley buses, in the metro and on trams. Each passenger entering a vehicle will be given a ticket with the name of the station where they get on, and the passenger will return the ticket to the recorder on exit.

The recorders will work for two weeks, until December 25. Every day, 8-10 public transport routes will be researched. According to Aidar Abdulkhakov, a total of 30 million tickets with the names of various stations will prior to the campaign be printed and dispersed. The counting and following analysis will be done in Saint-Petersburg.

The passenger traffic analysis is funded from the money allocated for the Universiade. The data collection should cost 4.5-5 million roubles, the bigger part to be paid to the recorders.