Improving public transport in Tirana, one step at a time.

The mobility of people is a major topic worldwide. Sustainable urban mobility is paramount to creating and sustaining livable cities by improving quality of life, promoting economic prosperity, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability. Sustainable urban mobility enhances resilience, supports effective urban planning, and fosters a balanced, accessible, and vibrant urban environment in our cities.

Urban mobility within Tirana, one of Europe’s most densely populated and rapidly expanding cities, has remained a pressing concern for many years. As the capital of Albania, Tirana has experienced high growth over recent decades, with its population tripling to almost 1 million people in the past 20 years. The surge in population has been accompanied by a significant rise in car ownership. In the late 1980s, under communism, car ownership was virtually non-existent, but by 2024, 44.4% of family units now own a car (INSTAT, 2024). Simultaneously, public transportation — which relies solely on privatized bus services — has not undergone significant improvements, rendering it incapable of accommodating the swiftly expanding population. Extreme traffic, rising emissions and decreasing quality of life are some of the negative results.

To unlock the potential of public transport in Tirana, it is essential to prioritize dependable, frequent, and easily accessible public transportation as a viable alternative to car usage. Over the years, Tirana’s bus services have faced numerous issues, ranging from poor quality and limited coverage to outdated fleets and a lack of reliable information for passengers. In 2015, the system was expanded to include new areas, primarily to connect villages within the Tirana Municipality. However, the general perception was that bus services in Tirana have not kept up with the growing expectations of citizens. In a 2020 study conducted by a local NGO, Qendra Steps, more than 80% of respondents reported low satisfaction with quality of service, safety, and access for people with disabilities.

Our Approach

Recognizing the urgent need for systematic change, the Municipality of Tirana together with GIZ embarked on a collaborative transformational journey with relevant stakeholders to reform Tirana’s bus system and make it future proof. The GIZ-led bus reform in Tirana began in 2020 with a comprehensive assessment of the prevailing challenges faced by the city’s bus services. A baseline analysis was conducted to assess the current conditions, and intervention measures were identified for targeted marginal improvements.

The key principles were:

• data-driven,
• passenger-focus,
• incremental changes every month,
• institutional development to deliver political goals.

Following the baseline review of Tirana’s bus network, providing the main operational and commercial performance indicators, we identified key intervention areas and measures, with a strategy to focus on data and working incrementally to lead to sustainable transformations.

The approach towards the collaboration was based on three main pillars:

1. Towards a passenger-focused public transportation system.
   By collecting data on passenger priorities and making it easy for passengers to provide inputs, we were able to support the Municipality of Tirana to target efforts and improve the service, building a passenger-focused bus service.
2. Creating an effective bus quality management system.
   By conducting an analysis of the current context, analysing, and sense-checking the existing datasets, collecting new data points, and turning them into actionable information, we were able to support the Municipality of Tirana in implementing a proactive approach to bus management.
3. Building sustainable institutional capacities.
   GIZ supported an institutional reform and expansion within the Transport Department, laying the groundwork for improved management of new projects like Bus Rapid Transit and the establishment of a Transport Authority in Tirana.

All these efforts were supported via demonstration projects that can be commenced at a smaller scale and can be scaled up incrementally, adapting to the pace of the partner and allowing for granular integration.

To learn more about how we improved Tirana’s public transport we invite you to explore our publication, “Improving Public Transport in Tirana, One Step at a Time,” available here.

Additionally, check out our Video Stories of Change, where our partners share their experiences and testimonies about our work:

• Towards a passenger-led bus system in Tirana
• Creating an effective bus management system in Tirana

There’s more to come, so stay tuned for updates!