The
New Center of Lodge (Lodz, Łódź) as seen from the north. In the
foreground the Russian Orthodox Church of St. Alexander Nevsky. With
the transformation of this part of the city Hanna Zdanowska will
likely go down in history of the informal capital of central Poland.
The
mayor of Lodge (Łódź) Zdanowska presented with a smile, but
without hiding their dissatisfaction, the budget of our city for the
next financial year.
To
get right to the poinst, Lodge will continue to work radically and at
the expense of even greater indebtedness to catch up with Warsaw and
surpass Posnan
Revenues
amount to PLN 4930 million and expenditures to PLN 5167
million, of which PLN 1 billion and PLN 96 million are new
construction projects and revitalization of old buildings, buying new
trams and so on. The city will again raise loans and bonds worth
PLN 146 million. Debts will rise to PLN 3.6 billion.
The
dissatisfied president of Łódź added that the city budget would
decrease by PLN 140 million due to the income tax (PIT) exemption
for citizens up to the age of 26 years. This is a government
decision in the context of electoral promises which
kept the ruling party in power. At the same time, however, it is
one of the main sources of local government revenue in our country.
According to her, for the sum mentioned above you can asphalt 80 kilometers of roads, replace 350 kilometers of sidewalks, buy 14 trams, etc. She used the opportunity to pass the big city's debt on to the central government. So, in this context, a loud quarrel with the PiS" chairman in the city council took place, but... Instead of citing here the exchange of views...
It
is more worthwhile to look at the situation of the trams
in Łódź, as important things happen in this area
in Łódź, as important things happen in this area
Among
the investments planned for the next budget, investments in the
tramway network of Lodz occupy an important place. For PLN 127
million, the city's efforts to increase the speed of the trams (it is
gradually being converted into a high-speed tramway
network) and to introduce increasingly comfortable and modern
models of light rail vehicles will continue.
Reconstruction
of the tram line on the Polish Army road (at estimated cost of PLN 50
million) is an example of radical and painful changes in Lodz
This
historic street,
where Poles, Germans and Jews once lived in peace and friendship
and which was bombed 80 years ago by
Hitler's air force, will change
beyond recognition, The complete
replacement of tram tracks and at least a significant part of the
road surface will cut off the population of the north-western part of
the city from the old city centre, at
least for the time of the overhaul and reconstruction work.
Not
to be dismissed yet, because in view of the dispute over old
tenements, the question arises when the last tenement houses in this
street will miraculously collapse.
For the sake
of fairness, however, it should be added that expenditure
on the renovation of tenements is the largest item
(PLN 377 million) among
Lodge's capital expenditures
which would be made
during the next financial year.
The
tram line has been modernized and now it is the turn of some tenement
błocks.
A
new railway station is to be built near the new tram loop, in the
newest part of the Polish Army road (ulica Wojska Polskiego), where
there is already a huge
self-service department store. From
there, you can quickly reach not only other city
railway stations (Lodge Metropolitan Railway – Łódzka Kolej
Aglomeracyjna, but also the
completely rebuilt long-distance train stations: Fabryczna and
Kaliska.
At
least but not last: Lodge receives state-of-the-art tram cars from
Posnan
The
tender for the delivery of 30 new trams has been completed. The
proposal was chosen by Modertrans,
a city-owned company in the city of Posnan that offers modern
low-floor cars, was ultimately chosen. Lodge pays PLN 269 million.
The tender rejected the cheapest offer, which was submitted by a
Turkish company and was considered a sure winner in the race. The
chassis technology ordered in Posnan
especially for this purpose is intended to facilitate the journey
through the old town.
The
Modertrans manufacturing plants began from an unpretentious job,
namely simple bus and tram repairs. Thanks to the wise policy of the
city administration, there were gradually more and more machines and
excellent specialists with them. From
the repair to the manufacture of components, their path led. Then an
assembly line of the first own rail vehicles was created. One of the
first stays abroad was held by the Posnan’s tram experts in Berlin.
The government in Warsaw has given money
to buy and develop the latest technologies.
Today, the Moderus-branded trams are conquering Poland, and tomorrow,
as is the case with Solaris city buses (which are also made near
Posnan), perhaps half of Europe will be the client of Modertrans.
Moderus
Gamma LF 01 AC. Artur Andrzej - Own work. Gdańsk Strzyża tramway
loop, vehicle’s trial version (rented by the manufacturer to TRAKO
2017) Moderus Gamma tram. CCBY 4.0