Dnipro has put five new low-floor trams into service under a €21.4 million public transport upgrade financed by the European Investment Bank (EIB), as the eastern Ukrainian city keeps essential services running during the war against Russia.
The trams are the city’s first low-floor models, joining a fleet that is more than 40 years old on average, the EIB informed in a release on Wednesday.
Low-floor vehicles allow passengers to board without steps, making access easier for older people, disabled passengers and parents with prams.
The trams were manufactured locally by Tatra-Yug at facilities in Dnipro, with up to 70% of components sourced from Ukrainian suppliers.
They are operating on line No. 1 between the city’s main railway station and the Ukrainian State University of Science and Technologies.
“Keeping people moving — to work, school, and around the city — matters every day and even more so during the war,” EIB Vice-President Karl Nehammer said.
More vehicles due later this year and in 2027
The €21.4 million package also covers 15 new low-floor trolleybuses due for delivery later this year and in 2027, as well as additional trams and maintenance equipment, the EIB said.
The Dnipro investment forms part of the €200 million Ukraine Urban Public Transport Project II, through which the EIB supports Ukrainian cities in upgrading urban public transport.
The project is coordinated by Ukraine’s Ministry of Finance and implemented by the Ministry for Recovery, Infrastructure and Transport in cooperation with participating municipalities and their transport companies.
“This is a long-awaited renewal of our electric transport,” Dnipro Deputy Mayor Ihor Makovtsev said.
