June 10 (SeeNews) - The Croatian capital Zagreb has launched a 260 million kuna ($40 million/35 million euro) overhaul of its tramway network, hiring public transport authority Zagreb Electric Tram (ZET) for the first phase of the works, ZET said on Monday.
The contract for awarding the first phase of the tramway network modernisation was signed by transport minister Oleg Butkovic, the head of ZET, Ljuba Zgela and the head of the Central Finance and Contracting Agency (SAFU), Tomislav Petric, ZET said in a statement.
The project includes renovation works on 11 sections with an overall 8,194 metres of tram tracks, and the revamp of three tramway stations.
The overall project cost is 260 million kuna, including 207.5 million kuna of grants. The EU's cohesion funds will provide 85% of the grants, or some 176.4 million kuna, while the remaining 15%, or some 31 million kuna, will come from the state budget.
The project should be completed by the end of 2023.
It aims to modernise and improve the quality of the existing tramway network in the city of Zagreb in order to meet EU standards for safety, security, disabled persons accessibility and reduction of CO2 emissions.
The overhaul should also result in a rise in the number of people using the city's tramway services.
(1 euro = 7.41752 kuna)