All aboard for Ruczaj!

A long-awaited new tram route into Ruczaj is set to be formally opened on Thursday this week - with the first passengers expected on Friday morning. The inauguration of the 1,800-metre line for route 12 will take place on the evening of December 29. The following morning, commuters, tourists and students will be able to get the tram between stops at Gronostajowa, Grota-Roweckiego, Kapelanka, Monte Cassino, Dietla, Starowiślna, Westerplatte, Lubicz and Mogilska - which will create easy access to both the city centre and Kazimierz. At the Ruczaj end, buses will run from Gronostajowa to the Jagiellonian University campus. The tram will run every ten minutes, while a second line, number 18, will go to Cichy Kącik every 20 minutes. With the new trams in operation, bus routes 124, 424 and 128 will only go as far as Rondo Grunwaldzki. The total cost of the Ruczaj tram network is anticipated to be in the region of 150 million zł. The entire project, including tram routes covering some 4km, should be complete by the end of 2012.