Mykolaiv and Odesa regions receive one hundred school buses at EU expense

Since the beginning of 2024, 101 school buses have been purchased in Mykolaiv and Odesa regions for a total of UAH 353.1 million.

This is stated in the material of Nikcenter.

The purchase was made possible by the transition of the School Bus program to EU financial support using the Ukraine Facility, which allowed the pace of fleet renewal to be maintained despite the war.

However, this transition led to a significant concentration of the market. Previously, the program was funded by a government subvention, but now procurement is centralized. In Mykolaiv region, the main customer is the regional council's municipal institution, the Center for Financial and Statistical Monitoring..., and in Odesa region, it is the regional state administration itself.

This centralization led to a narrowing of the range of suppliers: in 2023, buses were purchased from 12 companies, while in 2024-2025, only three companies supplied them. In particular, in Mykolaiv region, Cherkasy Bus JSC with Ataman vehicles took a monopoly position. In Odesa region, the main suppliers of ZAZ, Bogdan, and Etalon buses were Ukravto Zhytomyr, Ukravtosnab Automobile Company, and Etalon Auto Trading House.

Purchases are made through the Prozorro Market electronic catalog from certified sellers. This has accelerated the process and allowed for the unification of technical requirements for vehicle equipment, including seats for children with disabilities.

The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine passed a law that allows municipal carriers (trams, trolleybuses, and buses) to officially use vehicles received as humanitarian aid.

Previously, such assistance was only available to non-profit organizations, while all municipal transport providers are legally considered to be profit-making enterprises. Because of this, humanitarian vehicles received from abroad could not be used on the routes.

For example, 20 modern Mercedes buses, which Odesa received as humanitarian aid from partner cities Regensburg and Istanbul, have been idle in the fleet of the Odesmiskelektrotrans utility for a long time. Due to legal restrictions, these buses could not go on routes. And a similar situation is observed throughout Ukraine - more than 300 such vehicles remain stationary in different cities.

Катерина Глушко