The director of the Transportation Regulatory Institute of the Municipality of Managua (Irtramma), Amaru Ramírez, in an interview with official media, revealed that since October of last year to date, 1,500 Chinese buses have arrived in Nicaragua, of the 2,000 they are scheduled to acquire in this “first stage.”
«We have practically renewed the entire fleet of the Collective Urban Transport (TUC) of Managua. And we have been, for a few months now, beginning the transformation of the intermunicipal fleet for some municipalities in the country,” said Ramírez.
Related news: Nicaragua buys 500 buses from a Chinese company, users doubt that this will improve the country’s transportation system
The Chinese units that have arrived in the country to renew the public transport fleet, although they offer vehicles with infrastructure in good condition for passengers, continue to be overloaded and circulate infrequently during peak hours or times of higher demand, according to reported user complaints. on social networks.
Price of Chinese buses and minibuses, upon reservation
The Sandinista regime and its officials put on a show with the arrival of each batch of Chinese buses, bringing out the units in caravans and militants with Sandinista Front flags to greet them as they pass through the departmental capitals. However, they hide the price, transformed into debt for Nicaraguans, which must be paid for each unit to the Yutong company.
In June 2023, Ramírez signed, together with Ariel Meng, representative of Yutong, an agreement in which Nicaragua committed to acquire a total of 500 Chinese buses from that company, without specifying the amount for which they were acquired or the source of financing. of these.
The number of buses to be purchased was subsequently known to have increased, since the vice president and spokesperson for the Sandinista Front, Rosario Murillo, indicated that by the end of 2024 they would complete the acquisition of 2,000 units.
Related news: Another fleet of 250 Chinese buses arrives in Nicaragua
Initially, in November 2023, a first batch of 250 buses arrived and so far in 2024, the arrival of four batches has been recorded; two with 250 buses each, one with 100 and the last one that arrived recently which was 400.
The director of Irtramma announced that by 2027, in addition to the acquisition of “new buses”, they hope to replace the units that by then have already been in use for five years, including those that have arrived since October 2023.
«We are planning, together with our fellow transporters, the modernization and acquisition of vehicles for the year 2025, 2026 and 2027, which we will probably also be acquiring the BRT, in this same package, for the Héroes de la Insurrección Track, which will already practically be finished by that time and that it has to be there, a 10 kilometer corridor, and a BRT (Bus Rapid Transport) has to be operating,” he concluded. Ramirez.
New models of Chinese buses
The director of Irtramma explained that in the recent batch of 400 Chinese buses that arrived last weekend in Corinto, in Chinandega, four new models were included, among those 20-passenger microbuses, which will be located in public transportation in Bluefields and Bilwi, in the Caribbean of Nicaragua, and a “tourist-type” bus with a capacity of 50 passengers.
Ramírez explained that they also included in this lot a 30-passenger model, which will operate between Masaya, Granada and part of the country’s Pacific, and a bus, similar in model to those already operating in Managua, which is 12 meters, with a factory basket, capacity of 55 passengers, which will be used for ordinary transportation between Managua and the other departments of the country.
Related news: Fleet of Chinese buses, insufficient to meet the demand for transportation during “peak hours” in Managua
The large, tourism-type bus model, said the Irtramma official, was acquired primarily to connect the Caribbean and Managua, and they hope to expand it to other destinations in which the units travel about 200 kilometers in distance, expressly, with a single for technique, on routes such as Managua-Jalapa, Managua-San Carlos, and Managua-Guasaule.
«A new tourism-type model that, under the guidance of President Daniel Ortega, will operate between Bluefields and Managua, between Bilwi and the entire Northern Caribbean region and Managua. “It is a large bus, with air conditioning, capacity for 50 passengers,” Ramírez specified.
In addition, he highlighted that this bus offers some amenities that include, in addition to air conditioning, tables for each seat, USB chargers, reclining seats, foot pedals and soft leatherette material on all seats.
