A new bus route will be launched in Ukraine for the first time in 14 years
For the first time in 14 years, Ukraine plans to launch a brand-new interregional bus route. Now, a carrier that identifies demand for travel between cities or communities will be able to submit an application to create such a route online. The Ministry of Recovery, Infrastructure, and Transport says this should make the process simpler and faster.
Ukraine is launching a new system for establishing interregional bus routes. Thanks to this, carriers will be able to independently propose new routes if they see that people lack convenient connections between cities or communities. On September 29, the Ministry of Recovery, Infrastructure, and Transport announced that, thanks to the new procedure, a completely new interregional bus route will be launched in the country for the first time in 14 years. To this end, a special online portal has already been launched within the Ukrtransbezpeka system.
Previously, establishing a new route was significantly more complicated. Carriers had to submit paper documents, undergo additional passenger traffic surveys, and obtain numerous approvals. At the same time, the carrier itself could not simply propose a new route. They had to wait for the government to establish the route and put it out to bid.
The Ministry explains that the situation has changed significantly in recent years. People have moved to other cities, changed jobs and schools, and due to the full-scale war, new hubs have emerged that require regular service. “For the first time in 14 years, we are providing the opportunity to launch a completely new interregional bus route. People’s mobility has changed dramatically over the years, especially since the start of the full-scale war. People have moved, workplaces have changed, and new hubs have emerged. The bus route network must respond to these changes,” said Serhiy Derkach, First Deputy Minister of Recovery, Infrastructure, and Transport of Ukraine.
He added that the logic behind the new system is simple: if there are passengers who need a specific route and a carrier willing to operate it, the procedure for launching the route should be straightforward. “If there are people who need a connection and there is a carrier willing to provide it, the government must create a clear and expedited procedure for this,” explained Derkach.
How new routes will now be opened
The main change is the introduction of an online portal for opening interregional bus routes. It operates within the Unified Information Systems Complex of Ukrtransbezpeka. Now, a carrier can initiate the creation of a new route through the system on its own. To do this, the carrier must enter the required information, create a draft electronic route passport, sign the documents with a qualified electronic signature, and submit them for approval.
After submitting the application, the system automatically generates an electronic route passport. It includes the route map, schedule, drivers’ work and rest schedules, a fare table, and other necessary information. In other words, the route now effectively goes through all the main stages within a single digital environment. The carrier does not need to collect documents from various agencies and submit them in paper form.
How long will the approval process take?
The new system sets specific deadlines for the main stages. After the documents are submitted, the route plan is sent to the National Police. There, it must be reviewed within seven business days. If the police have not issued either approval or a denial within this time, the route is considered approved. This is one of the key changes compared to the previous procedure.
Once approved, the materials are forwarded to the transportation organizer. At this stage, a decision on opening an interregional route must be made within 30 days. If the decision is positive, an authorized representative of the Ministry applies a qualified electronic signature to the draft route passport. Afterward, the electronic passport receives a unique number and a QR code. As a result, the entire process—from route creation to approval—takes place electronically.
What Has Changed for Passengers
For passengers, the new system does not yet mean a specific new route will appear tomorrow. First, the carrier must propose a route, go through the approval process, and obtain an approved route passport. But the procedure itself now allows for a faster response to actual demand. If many people regularly travel between two cities or communities but there is no convenient direct bus service, the carrier can initiate such a route on its own.
The Ministry believes this is particularly important in light of the major changes in population mobility in recent years. Due to the war, people’s places of residence, commutes to work and school have changed, and new centers of activity have emerged. That is why the old route network does not always meet passengers’ current needs.
What Does “Unfreezing” the Route Network Mean?
Serhiy Derkach described the new system as a de facto “unfreezing” of the route network. “Previously, businesses waited for the government to propose a route. Now, a carrier that identifies real demand can initiate a new route,” he noted.
According to him, there is no longer a need to revert to the old paper-based system. “A route can be initiated online; documents are generated electronically; approvals have set deadlines; and the result is an electronic route passport with a QR code,” Derkach emphasized. The ministry expects that the new approach will allow for a faster response to situations where there is sustained demand for bus service in a particular region.
This is part of a broader effort to digitize bus transportation
The new online portal is not a standalone system but the next stage in the digitization of interregional bus transportation. Previously, the Ministry had already transitioned tenders for interregional routes to an electronic format. In the near future, the Ministry plans to approve the results of tenders for an additional 250 routes. Prior to this, a tender for 200 routes had already been conducted using the new digital procedure.
At the same time, existing paper permits are being converted to electronic format. Winners of the new tenders are already receiving permits electronically. Now, digitization is moving to the next stage—the creation of entirely new routes that did not previously exist in the network. The Ministry is encouraging carriers to use the new mechanism and submit proposals for routes where there is stable passenger demand but insufficient bus service.
The online portal for establishing interregional routes was developed by Ukrtransbezpeka in collaboration with the Ministry of Recovery, Infrastructure, and Transport of Ukraine, with support from the Swiss-Ukrainian EGAP program, implemented by the Eastern Europe Foundation. Thus, for the first time in 14 years, Ukraine is opening up the possibility of creating new interregional bus routes not only at the government’s initiative but also at the carrier’s own suggestion. Now the main question is how quickly the new system will prove itself in practice and how many new routes will emerge where there is genuine demand for them.
