TEHRAN– Iran’s Acting Industry, Mining, and Trade Minister Jafar Sarqeini said the country’s manufacturers have the capacity to produce 5,000 buses for the country’s urban transportation fleet by the end of the current Iranian calendar year (March 20, 2021).

“Manufacturing companies have announced their readiness to supply 5,000 buses for this program in the remaining months of this year; this is while 1,000 buses must enter the transport fleet annually to keep the age of this fleet at 10 years old,” Sarqeini said in a meeting on the renovation of the country’s transportation fleet.

Earlier, Iranian Transport and Urban Development Minister Mohammad Eslami had announced that his ministry is going to implement a program for renovation of the country’s road transportation fleet in collaboration with the Industry Ministry.

Sarqeini called for the participation of all municipalities in the country in the implementation of this plan and announced a committee to follow up and implement the provisions of this plan should be formed in the program and budget organization.

He noted that all the country’s major manufacturers will do their best for the realization of the goals of this program, adding: "In this regard, municipalities and village administrators should notify the Industry Ministry about the specifications and number of buses needed for the current year and next year, so that based on the provided data and with the participation of all producers, this plan could be operational.”

Back in May, Eslami had unveiled a portal for the owners of worn-out vehicles to register in the renovation program.

Speaking in the unveiling ceremony, the minister said the government’s program for renovating the country’s road transport fleet is going to reduce the average age of the fleet to 14.5 years.

The official noted that in order to accelerate the implementation of the plan, 25 domestic companies are going to participate in the program.

Domestic companies can participate in the renovation of up to 1,000 vehicles a year, while large-scale companies are also allowed to purchase and import up to 100 foreign vehicles to renovate their fleet, he said.

EF/MA