At a meeting of the mixed commission between the Ministry of Communities, Territories, and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine and the Ministry of Transport of the Czech Republic, the parties agreed on a series of changes to simplify the opening of bus routes.
The ministry noted that a parity partner from the adjacent country will no longer be required. The approval process for routes and issuance of permits will take no more than 4 months.
“The growing demand for bus transportation requires the state to ensure an efficient process for opening new routes so that the market can quickly respond to passenger requests. The Czech Republic is one of the most popular countries for bus connections, so we have simplified the route opening procedure in collaboration with our Czech colleagues. Firstly, we are removing the requirement for a parity partner, which complicates the procedure, and setting clear timeframes to allow carriers to plan their operations. I am confident that this decision will improve transport accessibility, increase passenger traffic, and stimulate business activity,” said Serhiy Derkach, Deputy Minister of Communities, Territories, and Infrastructure Development.
It is noted that the Czech Republic has become the first country with which Ukraine has ensured full compliance with regular bus routes.
This year, agreements on non-parity passenger transport have already been made with Slovakia.