Two-month visit to Vilnius for a mock-up of the Nice
tramway

Between the 1950s and 1980s, Vilnius, the capital of
Lithuania, opted for the construction of large collective
residential developments on the outskirts of the city, meaning
that its population now lives some distance away from the
employment available in the city centre. Another problem is
that the river Neris divides the Lithuanian capital up into two
parts. Traffic from one bank to the other is intense and
traffic jams are common. Then there is the fact that Vilnius,
which has 550,000 inhabitants, has no public transport except
for trolley buses and coaches.



Following extensive analysis, tramways were identified as the
most suitable urban transport solution for the city, as they
would allow it to make people less isolated and bring fresh
energy to the public transport system. In order to gauge public
opinion and assess the level of support for the opening of a
tramway line, the mayor has chosen to employ a process
identical to that used in London by displaying a model of a
tramway, in this instance a CITADIS from the city of Nice.


Three lines planned

If the project goes ahead, three tramway lines could be
introduced in Vilnius by 2015/2020, all of them connected to
the existing public transport network. Line 1, considered a
priority, would have a length of 12 kilometres and be operated
by around 15 vehicles measuring 40 metres in length and 2.65
metres in width.