Residents: 'Be patient, metro will come soon'

Ufa residents once again discussed the transport situation in the city — after the publication of expert opinions that explained why there are no night buses. The main conclusion was that day-time transport needs to be improved first. Here are the positions of UFA1.RU readers.

One of the most popular comments was that other million-plus cities are more advanced, while Ufa seems to have stopped developing a decade and a half ago.

«Under [former president of Bashkortostan Rustem] Khamitov, I stood at the bus stop for no more than 3 minutes! 5-10 minutes was unheard of. I could get from the center to Chernikovka or Dyoma until 3 a.m. What«s happening now is a mockery,» a Ufa resident said.

However, his statement that one could get to Dyoma at 3 a.m. is being questioned.

«Well, you«re quite a joker!» the commenter indignantly said.

«In Chelyabinsk, night buses run from the airport and the railway station. Not often, but strictly on schedule,» a user of our site noted.

Another Ufa resident, who works on a rotational basis, says that a night bus in Ufa is still very necessary.

«At night, several flights with shift workers land; they hang around the airport until morning, and with the first bus (which you still have to somehow catch) they ride with huge bags, usually to the bus and railway station, picking up regular passengers along the way,» the resident explains.

The Ministry of Transport of Bashkortostan explains the absence of such routes partly by saying that then residents will also have to get somewhere afterwards. They«ll be taken into the city, and then how will they be distributed to their homes? That means more buses would be needed.

A reader of our site believes that you can do without that: the main thing is just to get people to the city, and then they can get home by taxi themselves. As an example, he cites the cost of a taxi from the airport to the Southern Bus Station: about 900 rubles ($10 at current rates), whereas he could save and go home from, say, Galle.

«The distance from the airport to the Monument is about 20 km. And if a passenger gets at least to the Monument, they can switch to a taxi and get to the Television Center or the School of the Interior Ministry for a minimal fare. The same goes for other locations. And the farther they go by bus, the cheaper the taxi ride will be,» another reader stated.

He believes that it is possible to set up a schedule of once per hour, launch a direct night route from the airport to Inors or VAZ along Salavat Yulaev Avenue.

«Not all public transport should be profitable. After all, transport is for passengers, not the other way around. Provide subsidies in the city budget!» he indignantly proposed.

«Open an hourly night through route from Airport to Inors. Beyond that, it«s not your problem! They»ll get a taxi from the stops!» another stated.

Among the comments, there was a suggestion that, its author is sure, will definitely help.

«We need glass buses for night routes with strippers dancing inside, then there will be no doubt about the profitability of the routes,» the author said.

Answering the question of why there are no night buses in Ufa, another reader speaks sharply: he says that Bashavtotrans has become a «self-sufficient enterprise,» which is why it supposedly fell into decline.

«There are no competitors left, they don«t have to strain, they»ll get their money anyway,» the reader summed up.

But the state carrier does have competitors; the other question is how much passenger traffic they have.

«The whole of Russia is horrified that in the city of Ufa with a population of 1.5 million, there is no bus from the station to the airport. Only expensive taxis,» another user stated.

In fairness, it should be noted that there is route No. 101, which passes through the railway station and goes to the airport. But there is a catch — this bus does not run very often. And the population of Ufa is not 1.5 million.

Another Ufa resident stated that he could not get a good job because he cannot leave the VAZ area at 5 a.m., and the first bus goes at 5:30 a.m.

Transport in general also got its share of criticism.

«A complete failure of passenger transportation. At rush hour, total chaos, but at other times all the buses run one after another. Well, for carriers, night apparently comes at 9 p.m. If you can«t handle the passengers, get off the route and let others work,» a user fumed.

They also didn«t forget the promise to build a suburban train to the airport — like in Kazan.

«We«re not in Kazan; there they do things quietly, but here we only make promises,» a Ufa resident briskly stated.

And they also remembered the metro.

«Just be patient a little, the metro will be here soon,» a user stated.

«Why do we need the metro? We«ll fall through anyway,» another replied.