Urban and Suburban Transit Association

The Urban and Suburban Transit Association (VEKE) (Hungarian: Városi és Elővárosi Közlekedési Egyesület) is a Hungarian non-profit organization, aimed at developing city transport in Hungary.

Organizational structure

VEKE's headquarters are located in Budapest. Besides this main organization there exists two affiliated VEKE Érd-Diósd and Győr organizations. VEKE can only lobby in the cities where they have affiliated organization. VEKE organizations are open for co-operation with the city governments, but they will always maintain their political neutrality and will always do their work on a non-profit basis.

Workgroups

The members of VEKE participate in one of the two following workgroups:

  • The Transport-developer workgroup does research on city transport and recommendates means for improving the city's urban and suburban transport.
  • The Transportoperation-history workgroup does historical research on the past of urban and suburban transport. They make commemorations, informative campaigns, and want to create a nostalgic depot in the future. In 2004 and 2005 they made a nostalgic bus tour.

VEKE's results so far
  • November 1, 2003: Budapest tram line no. 41 is extended from Móricz Zsigmond körtér to Batthyány tér due to the fact the reconstruction of körter destroys the old turnaround and does not allow 41 to switch tracks in the new station due to the extensive traffic of the 47, 18, and 118 trams.
  • July 1, 2005: Volánbusz lines to Érd got a new timetable (buses at nights and in weekends)
  • July 4, 2005: Budapest bus line 112 is extended
  • September 1, 2005: Reform of the night service in Budapest
  • October 29, 2005: A new tram is introduced on the Budapest no. 52 tram line (TW 6000 trams from Hannover)
  • December 3, 2005: Reform of the no. 7 bus family (7, fast 7, 73, 173)
  • February 2006: Modifications in the parameter book of BKV (the BKV wanted to dissolve some buslines)
  • Spring 2006: Tram line no. 6's turnaround on Móricz Zsigmond körtér is destroyed due to noise reasons, and building for a new tram stop for the no. 6 is built.

VEKE presented some serious plans for further improvement of Budapest's city transport. Maybe the most important is the proposed uniting of the Gödöllő HÉV line and metro line 2. The city government did not totally agree with the plan (because of lack of money and because they think the present system is still working fine), but it still may be built after 2015.

Other plans include the extension of the cog railway of Budapest to Széll Kálmán tér and Normafa and the rebuilding of the tram lines between Thököly road and the Small Boulevard.

See also
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