Tashkent to Launch 16 New Bus Routes in Expansion

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Authorities in Tashkent plan to launch 16 new bus routes in the capital by the end of this year amid population growth and increasing pressure on the city’s public transport system, Deputy Mayor for Transport and Road Infrastructure Abdurahman Bakhtiev said in an interview with the Oʻzbekiston 24 television channel.

He said the existing fleet of 1,900 buses operating across 169 routes is no longer sufficient to meet growing passenger demand. Daily passenger flow in the capital currently reaches 1.4 million people, but officials aim to increase this figure to 2 million passengers by the end of the year.

At a meeting dedicated to transport system development, officials also discussed digitization of the sector, creation of regional dispatch centers, a gradual transition away from cash payments, and the rollout of similar solutions across other regions of the country.

Bakhtiev noted that the bus gross-contract system introduced in Tashkent has proven effective and is being considered as a model for further expansion, including possible application on routes between Tashkent and Tashkent region.

Regional authorities also reported on related initiatives. Khorezm region Governor Jura Bek Rakhimov said that, on presidential instructions, the gross-contract system will be introduced in Khiva following its rollout in Urgench.

Kashkadarya region Governor Murotjon Azimov said local entrepreneurs have purchased 245 vehicles over the past two years, including 165 buses and 80 minibuses, and plan to acquire more than 100 additional buses by the end of the year to serve new routes connecting district centers with remote villages and neighborhoods.

Tashkent region Governor Zoir Mirzaev said that, thanks to an extended exemption from the recycling fee on imported buses, private operators plan to increase vehicle imports from the previously planned 136 units to more than 230 units. This is expected to enable the launch of 14 additional routes.