Criticism
Again and again, we can see how irrational city planning in the past can cause a real disaster for its inhabitants after just a few decades. Batumi is the typical example of such a situation when the city centre became the real “bottleneck” (in a multiple of places) where public busses, private cars, freight lorries and freight trains are struggling for their place. Well and located in the heart of the city bulky oil terminals and freight port facilities making the situation even worst.
The city of Batumi is growing fast, but the infrastructure and public transportation solutions are crawling somewhere far on the back. Municipal bus network and weird private minibus services are like two separate operas. What about the motley heap of private taxi vehicles – I even stay aside in silence. The central railway station located far away from the centre somewhere in the outskirts from one side, the Batumi international airport is on the opposite side of the town and between them the bundle of overcrowded streets. Furthermore, very crowded Sarpi border crossing point also is on the opposite side to the central railway station. The bus route between Sarpi and railway station is a nightmare – bus usually stops for a longer time in traffic jams even during off-rush hours. Once I experienced this situation while riding the bus from Sarpi BCP to the railway station trying to catch my train to Tbilisi. Of course, I was late and missed my train. I was thirty minutes late, guys!
Let’s take a look at the simple diagram (Figure 1) and understand the problem. The light-red areas showing the most critical zones.
Last years the government of Georgia in collaboration with the government of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara trying to solve this nightmare. The railway station was moved from Makhinjauri further to the centre (but not actually to). Right now the big project of bypass main road to Sarpi BCP is in the process – this will help to divert most freight and passenger transport units from Batumi City centre. Despite it, the problems of municipal transportation cannot be solved without additional actions. The main reason has a very human origin: the people who forced to change poorly organized public transportation to their private cars rather will not give away their comfort. Only radical solutions can make changes in the habits, but firstly townsfolk have to trust on good intentions of city bosses.
Possible solution
In the case of Batumi dramatic changes in the philosophy of city transportation such as the creation of new hi-capacity transportation network from scratch is the way to go, I would say. The tramway for Batumi definitely is the way. It is expensive, but the very effective solution and the town of Batumi being the magnet for investors surely can afford it.
As can be seen at the image above (Figure 2, please click on image and open it in a New Tab to for highest possible quality), the proposed Batumi tram network consists only of a few tram lines, which serves most densely populated areas of the city. Thanking the earliest town planning the pattern of tram routes in the central part can follow a chess-like network with only differences outside the town centre.
Tramway routes
Route 1 (light-green) connecting the northern part of the town, bus terminal, town centre and international airport.
Route 2 (red) is serving parallelly the Route 1 just two blocks aside. The optional line extension (2a) would operate in the densely populated suburban area of Khelvachauri Village.
Route 3 (light-blue) can solve two problems in a row – to connect central railway station with the centre, sea coast and with the airport. The line would use both street track and heavy-rail infrastructure (between the Agro-Market and Batumi Central Railway Station), so it must be a dual voltage light-type trains (LTR).
Route 4 (violet) connects two Route 1 and 2 at the perpendicular direction at the centre and the outskirts and ends at the seaside downwards. Route 5 and 5a (yellow line) can perform the non-stop both directional circle service letting the inhabitants and the tourists quickly move within the central part of the town.
As the big and ambitious project, the regular express tram service (likely LTR) between the central railway station and Sarpi BCP and Chakvi (dashed grey, Route 6) can be the next priority.
Bus routes
If we look on the route map, we can see only six bus lines where only one is serving inner (but not central!) town area (bus route 7), but all remaining are peripheral.
Route 7 connects Todogauri, Adlia and Angisa districts in the north and Lower Urekhi district on the north-east with the bus terminal.
Route 10 can serve as the commuter between tram terminus in Batumi Airport and Sarpi BCP via Avgia, Gonio and Kvariati. For direct passengers between Sarpi BCP and the airport shuttle services can be the solution. Tram Route 6 can substitute this bus route.
Bus routes 8, 9, 11 and 12 connecting Batumi Town with the mountainous suburbs such as Ortabatumi, Zeda Akhalsheni, Tsinsvla and Upper Urekhi on the east and north-east.
Express Line 6 with its extension
Line 6 could perform express services along the Black Sea coastline starting from Chakvi Station (which is the last station within the municipality of Batumi northbound direction) and the Sarpi BCP. Outside the city, the line will stop at the existing railway stations. Some local platforms can be added to unload the road traffic additionally. Here we can see also one more peripheral bus line (13 and 13a) serving the old bypass road between Makhinjauri Beach and Chakvi stations. Please take a look to the Figure 3 below for better imagination.
The purposed new platforms on existing heavy rail part between Chakvi and Bus Station are Chakvi-Batumi St., Makhinjauri Beach, Makhinjauri-Tamar Mepe St., Korolistskali, Agaraki St, I. Noneshvili St., Batumi-F. But the extension of Line 6 would have the following platforms or stations: I. Meskhi St, Ombolo Turn, Avgia, Gonio Fortress, Gonio School, Gonio, Kvariati, and Sarpi as a terminus.
The extension will definitely undergo many difficulties and the rise of additional expenses according to the mountains located very close to the sea coast in the section between Gonio and Sarpi where likely will be necessary to build a three km long overpass (marked with orange dotted line). Authorities will certainly have to face a barrage of criticism about the reasonability of this part of the project.
Nevertheless, it is very possible that this project will be a trigger for a new international project to extend this line even further to the nearest Turkish settlement Üçkardeş. Thus, the heavily overcrowded Sarpi BCP, which has already exhausted its capacity, will be heavily unloaded from the huge single-passenger masses. Moreover, if the non-stop express between both countries will be offered, the border control can be safely transferred inland to the termini of the express. It can be the central railway station of Batumi from the Georgian side and the above-mentioned town of Üçkardeş from the Turkish side.
Very short afterword
Batumi, apparently is not going to get rid of its freight container terminal and disgusting oil storages, however, the new tram network can make its work – Batumi will take its big sip of fresh air. All in this life cost money, but all is possible if responsible people have a wish. My best wishes to this beautiful city!
