Havana/Not even the new Chinese microbuses Foton, which the official press has presented as the last Coca Cola in the Cuban transport desert, have managed to alleviate the situation of the sector in Santiago de Cuba. This Saturday, Sierra Maestra He revealed that an inspection of the Taxi Santiago agency showed that itineraries are not met at the established schedules due to the lack of vehicles and blackouts that prevent recharging vehicle batteries.
Despite 20 new ones were integrated Units last June, the official medium said that there are already several vehicles “paralyzed by breaks, lack of tires, batteries and other problems, in addition to the lack of drivers, because only 10” work, while, of 30 combustion tricycles, barely “work 16 as average.” In addition, he indicated that there is a “poor programming, well below the demand, while the modification of the rates” was not disseminated by the agency.
The irregularities impact on the coverage of the routes, where the biggest problems were detected in which they go from Micro 8-Ferreiro and the 18 Garzón plants to the Juan Bruno Zayas Clinical Hospital. “Failure with the exit and return schedules of combustion tricycles” and, in the case of microbuses, some vehicles are in repairs “and do not meet the number of established trips.” As for the tricycles, “they circulate outside the established routes.”
“Failure to be reported with the exit and return schedules of combustion tricycles”
The Eastern capital, with more than half a million inhabitants, has 190 officially established routes, of which 131 currently operates, according to data from the body in charge of transport. These journeys are served by a combination of state media, business vehicles, private cars and leased media, some of which also provide ambulance or funeral cars service, although lately it is motorcycles that have resolved much of the transfers. Its use in the province was fired from the pandemia and it is estimated that around 14,000 circulate as a semi-informed taxi service.
Despite the panorama that the own Sierra Maestra Devela, the official medium indicated in its report that, even so, there are “positive elements in compliance with microbuses routes, electric and combustion tricycles for urban service, which enjoy acceptance.”
The arrival of Chinese microbuses, announced with hype and saucer by the official press, in addition to being insufficient to mitigate the transport problem in the country, they have presented Failures very soonsuch as broken doors, decomposed air conditioners and even some have stopped in the streets, with just a few days of use.
Those imperfections of new vehicles add to the poor state of bus that, in many cases, have fulfilled their life cycle
These imperfections of new vehicles add to the poor state of bus that, in many cases, have fulfilled their life cycle. To try to revive those buses, China has sent to the country parts, pieces and equipment for repair. The first lot of help arrived in Cuba at the end of July, through the Chinese Agency for International Development Cooperation. There, the supplies were delivered to the bus producing Evelio Prieto, which had “tens of stopped vehicles.”
The package includes engines, tires and batteries, and will be distributed between mechanical, electrical and quality control works. With this, one of the priorities is to recondition the interior of the old bus in Havana, some in need of “capital reparation”, so that “they have the capabilities with which they started working with.”
The ambitious plan is to enable up to five vehicles per month and, at the end of the year, deliver between 40 and 50. However, he said Cubadebatethe Director of Transportation of Havana, Yuniel de la Rosa, enthusiastically, said that with Chinese assistance a hundred bus and that are expected next shipments that will arrive from formal gradual to the country by sea will be expected.
