State government invests in public transportation.
The public passenger transport system is used by approximately 500 people. With ongoing expansions, capacity is expected to increase to 1,6 million.
Raphael Coutinho_247 – Public transportation is one of the areas the Pernambuco government will be working on in preparation for the World Cup. Direct and indirect investments are planned in this area, including the construction of an integrated terminal and a metro station near the World Cup Arena, as well as road corridors crossing the Recife Metropolitan Region. The planned investments are around R$ 21,45 million, solely for the construction of the terminal and the metro station.
The Greater Recife Transportation Consortium (GRCT), responsible for managing traffic in the Recife Metropolitan Region, is already conducting demand studies to assess the population's needs for creating bus lines at the terminal in accordance with the area's growth.
“We are intensively studying this demand to find out where these people want to go. Two existing bus lines that circulate in the area will be transferred to the terminal, and its total capacity is up to five lines,” explained the planning director of GRCT, André Melibeu. The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2013.
With over one million vehicles circulating, according to data from Detran-PE (the Pernambuco State Traffic Department), the Recife Metropolitan Region (RMR) feels the effects of a lack of urban planning in the constant traffic jams. The state's strategy to improve traffic flow before the World Cup is to enhance public transportation. Today, approximately 500 people use public transport in Greater Recife. The Integrated Structural System (SEI) consists of 13 integrated terminals, with a capacity for 800 passengers. By 2013, nine more units should be delivered to the public. With the expansion of the system, the expectation is to serve 1,6 million passengers.