Transport: Stop to Crisis, Resources for Underground, Municipalities and Provinces

Regional Minister for Transport Sergio Vetrella commented on the Regional Executive Board Resolution that set forth the urgent payment of 40 million € for the regional rail transport companies of the Eav Group (Circumvesuviana, MetroCampania NordEst and Sepsa): “We are carrying on, day by day, measure by measure, making steps forward in the difficult and demanding plan to recover and revamp regional transport companies: we have been the first to start it after years of disasters and abandonment by the administrations that came before us”.

The payment, that will cover the whole amount of payments for transport services delivered by all the companies of the group until next 31 December, has been ordered in advance, compared with the usual payment procedures, and with priority, compared with the other payments in progress, bearing in mind the serious economic crisis that the companies are experiencing. Particularly, it allows partial repayment of the already advanced sums for financial institutions and the consequent disbursement of new advances necessary to pay the workers’ salaries.

The same resolution also established the urgent payment of 21 million € more to Provincial Capital Municipalities and Provinces for road transport services, again bearing in mind the serious economic crisis that the transport sector is experiencing, and that is creating remarkable problems to workers and disruptions for citizens who use transport services.

The Regional Minister highlighted: “After the merging of companies, made official just yesterday, to cut cost and streamline management, today, through a special resolution, we have succeeded in disbursing important resources, even in advance, that will give workers more tranquillity and will reduce disruptions for users. In the meanwhile, daily and continuous meetings with creditor banks carry on in order to try to solve the situation definitively, as well as the job of the Commissioner appointed by the Government upon our urge, who, in agreement with Regione and Eav, is drafting a repayment plan for the verified surplus and the division of the two only rail transport companies: one is responsible for the services and the other for infrastructure and rolling stock, as envisaged by the regional financial stabilisation plan and preparing for the tenders announced by EU and national calls. All these actions are consistent with the strategic transport plan we drafted”.

He concluded: “At the same time, we also were willing to disburse remarkable resources for Municipalities and Provinces that have transport companies with economic troubles, such as ANM of Naples and CSTP of Salerno. We wish these companies succeed in getting out of this difficult situations through effective and crucial actions in order to have the whole local public transport sector of Campania returned to normality as soon as possible”.