The creator of the community “The City Doesn’t Infuriate”, Dmitry Polyakov from Tomsk, decided to organize a fundraiser “for the purchase of necessary things” for the conductors of Tomsk trams. The idea to make such an action was born spontaneously, Polyakov told the vtomske.ru journalist. In frosty weather, a Tomsk citizen saw a conductor in a tram who was heating a cash register by the stove.
On the eve of the telegram channel “The city does not infuriate”, which covers the urban problems of Tomsk, there was a postwhich told regarding the male conductor of tram number 1.
“The conductor of tram number 1 warms up the cash register. At first we wanted to make fun of what we saw in this tram today. <...> But then we saw that this conductor greets everyone very politely, greets everyone, smiles and does his job in a completely friendly manner. He exchanges a few words with someone, joking. We became uncomfortable. There was no time for jokes and irony. It has become not just sad, but incredibly sad from everything that is happening with transport for people in the city, ”the message says.
The community noted that the conductor did not have special identification marks, uniforms, or gloves. The man, according to the channel, rubbed and warmed his hands following the calculation of the next passengers, warmed his leg, “because he has autumn shoes, and it’s a little warmer in the tram than outside at -26 ° C.”
About the tram itself, “The City Doesn’t Infuriate” wrote that it had long expired and was used “only because there are no other options.”
Community authors have decided start fundraising “to buy the necessary things for the conductors.” The purchased items are planned to be transferred to the Tram and Trolleybus Post Office. The list of subjects is yet to be determined.
“I often travel around the city by tram, I constantly see the state of this type of transport, I always look for the conductor with my eyes, because sometimes you can’t distinguish him from passengers – he has no identification marks, except for a cash register. In general, I almost daily feel all the “charms” of the Tomsk tram. But the last time during the trip, the situation with the conductor in general was the last straw. He was so sorry that almost instantly and impulsively the idea was born to organize a collection to help the tram and specifically the conductors, ”Dmitry Polyakov told vtomske.ru journalist.
According to him, TTU or the administration of Tomsk did not contact him, but there was a response from the mayor’s office in the channel “The city does not infuriate.” They explained that on Thursday, due to the low night temperature in the morning in the tram, “it might be really cold” (at night, the trams are on the street).
“A tram, like any transport, needs some time from the moment of movement to warm up the car. In addition, each conductor must be given a set of clothing – a warm jacket, pants and shoes of the size necessary for a person. The kit is updated every two years. Due to the fact that all tickets are issued to passengers through the terminal, many conductors independently decide not to wear gloves,” the city hall said.
They added that problems with the terminals due to their freezing were not fixed. And conductors and drivers, according to the administration, can “drink tea and warm up” in special rooms that are at the end of each route.
Polyakov does not yet know how the conductors and TTU management may react to the action. Speaking regarding how this whole situation can be corrected, the activist noted that a request from residents is needed.
“If there is a massive request, there is a chance that some kind of movement will start. We need political shifts, we need deputies who will move the agenda with public transport. It seems that if some of the deputies are transferred to trams, then this issue will definitely begin to be resolved many times faster. When you see with your own eyes what form the tram is in, when you use it every day, when inconveniences appear from the first second you enter the tram, then you want to start solving them. While these issues are being resolved in warm and comfortable offices in an abstract universe, nothing will budge, ”the Tomsk citizen explained his position.
Earlier it was reported that the administration of Tomsk sent a letter to the Moscow government with a request to transfer decommissioned trams to the city free of charge. In 2024, Tomsk expects to receive five new trams as part of a federal project.
In the fall of 2022, the Tram and Trolleybus Department said that the trams that today are in the TTU fleet have 90% wear and tear, and 100% for trolleybuses.
