The components of the Curitiba’s Bus Rapid Transit Rideability Improvement Project include: i) Lane Restructuring: This includes merge-and-go or drive-thru passing lanes in the corridors, pavement interventions supported by the principles of Greenroads® certification, traffic control and monitoring equipment, landscaping, accessibility and bus station improvements following an intelligent transportation system approach. It also includes a complementary feeder network with the implementation of the Safe System approach as part of Curitiba’s Life in Transportation (Vida no Trânsito) Program. a) East-West Corridor: There are 33 bus stations, over an extension of 22.5 km of concrete pavement. The complementary feeder network, outside of the East-West Corridor, will go through road infrastructure restructuring for an extension of 10.2 km of asphalt pavement. b) South Corridor: There are 13 bus stations, over an extension of 7.5 km. Concrete pavement will only be applied to the city block where the stations are located, for about 4.0 km of the South Corridor. ii) Bus Terminals: This includes infrastructure improvements of bus terminals along the East-West Corridor to support the integration of the complementary feeder network. Innovative technology will be applied to close the gap among traditional, smart and digital infrastructure to improve passenger experience.

The Project aims to prioritize use of public transportation and discourage the use of individual transportation, thus improving socio-economic conditions through increased mobility, optimization, expansion and requalification of the public transportation infrastructure.

The Project will enhance the quality and efficiency of the BRT, including the reduction of operational and vehicle maintenance costs, with expected: (i) increase in average operational speed by 35%; (ii) reduction in travel time by 25%; (iii) reduction in CO2 emissions by 14% and; (iv) increase in the number of weekday passengers by 5%.

The Project will be implemented over five years. The Government of Municipality of Curitiba will implement the Project through Instituto de Pesquisa e Planejamento Urbano de Curitiba (IPPUC) and Secretaria Municipal de Obras Públicas (SMOP)  and will be co-implementing agencies which will rely on the Technical-Administrative Management Unit (UTAG) for implementation management. Procurement will be conducted in compliance with the national law and regulations and NDB’s Procurement Policy

The Project is Category B in line with NDB’s Environmental and Social (E&S) Framework. The major E&S impacts during construction include: (i) land acquisition of 7,400 m2 with involuntary resettlement of about 90 persons; (ii) removal of about 300 ironwood trees; (iii) temporary disruption of traffic; (iv) community and occupational health and safety, and; (v) potential impacts on archaeological, cultural and historical heritages.

The total cost of the Project is estimated at USD 93.75 million. NDB will finance USD 75.00 million or 80% of the total cost. The remaining balance will be financed by counterpart funds from the Municipality of Curitiba.