Sales of new buses in Ukraine in 2025 will grow by 13-15% compared to 2024 – to 940-950 units, according to Vadym Shkarupin, director of the Etalon Auto trading house.
“Although the year is not over yet, and we, like other companies, are still working, according to open data (excluding closed purchases), about 940-950 buses will be sold, compared to 831 buses last year,” he said at a press conference in Kyiv on Monday.
According to his data, Ataman buses manufactured by the Cherkasy Bus plant are in first place in sales this year with 370 units (market share of 39%), followed by ZAZ buses from the Zaporizhzhia Automobile Plant (UKRAVTO Group) with 240 units (24%), and third place goes to Etalon buses manufactured by the Chernihiv Automobile Plant, with 130 units (14%).
Next in the ranking are Bogdan buses (manufactured by BAS Motor in Lutsk) with 100 units (11%), and fifth place is taken by imported Isuzu buses (50 units or 6% of the market).
Another 50 buses are from other manufacturers: Turkish Temsa, Otocar, and two Elektron buses.
The largest number of buses sold were in the small class – 720 units (77%), 160 units (17%) were sold in the medium class, and 60 units (6.5%) in the large class.
Almost all buses sold were diesel-powered, with two electric buses sold.
“In terms of structure, 88-90% of sales were made using budget funds: for example, of the 940 buses sold, 720 were school buses. No more than 12% were sold to retailers, but this cannot even be called retail, because these were purchases made by companies for their own needs, to transport personnel. We had orders from Ukrnafta, from the Khmelnytskyi Nuclear Power Plant, and other manufacturers are also working in this direction. Meanwhile, retail is at a standstill today, there are no purchases,” Shkarupin said.
At the same time, he noted that Ukrainian companies have work thanks to the School Bus program.
Passenger traffic across the Ukrainian border in the third week of December, from December 13 to 19, jumped by 26.3% to 562,000 as Christmas approached, and this weekend the increase reached 50%, causing queues at the border with Poland, Hungary, and Slovakia, according to data from the State Border Service.
According to them, the number of border crossings for departure increased to 279,000 from 226,000 a week earlier, while the increase for entry was even more significant – to 283,000 from 219,000.
This Saturday, December 20, the number of border crossings for exit and entry was also similar – 62,000 and 63,000, compared to 41,000 and 39,000, respectively, on the previous Saturday.
The number of vehicles that passed through checkpoints this week also jumped to 140,000 from 123,000 a week earlier, while the flow of vehicles carrying humanitarian cargo remained at around 520.
According to the State Border Service, as of 12:00 on Sunday, there were no queues at the border with Romania and Poland, while at the borders with three other countries, there were queues at all checkpoints.
At the border with Poland, most passenger cars and buses were waiting to cross at the Krakovets checkpoint – 150 and 20, respectively. The queue at the Ustyluh checkpoint consisted of 125 cars and 15 buses, at the Rava-Ruska checkpoint – 110 cars, Smilnytsia checkpoint – 85 cars and 6 buses, Shehyni checkpoint – 80 cars and 19 buses, Hrushev checkpoint – 80 cars and 9 buses, Nizhankovychi checkpoint – 80 cars and 1 bus, Ugrinov checkpoint – 75 cars and 9 buses, Yagodin checkpoint – 30 buses (passage of passenger cars is temporarily suspended).
Forty passenger cars and two buses were waiting to cross the border with Slovakia at the Uzhgorod checkpoint, and 30 cars were waiting at the Maly Berezny checkpoint.
At the border with Hungary, the longest queues were at the Luzhanka and Dzvinovo checkpoints, with 50 and 45 cars, respectively. There were 30 cars at the Kosino and Vilok checkpoints and 5 at the Tisa checkpoint.
The total number of border crossings this week is slightly lower than last year. At that time, 294,000 people left Ukraine and 290,000 entered the country over the same 7 days, although the flow of cars was lower – 134,000.
Last year, a 28.1% jump in passenger traffic was recorded this week, and the following week it increased by another 12.5%.
As reported, from May 10, 2022, the outflow of refugees from Ukraine, which began with the start of the war, was replaced by an influx that continued until September 23, 2022, and amounted to 409,000 people. However, since the end of September, possibly influenced by news of mobilization in Russia and “pseudo-referendums” in the occupied territories, followed by massive shelling of energy infrastructure, the number of people leaving has exceeded the number of people entering. In total, from the end of September 2022 to the first anniversary of the full-scale war, it reached 223,000 people.
During the second year of full-scale war, the number of border crossings to leave Ukraine, according to the State Border Service, exceeded the number of crossings to enter by 25,000, during the third year by 187,000, and since the beginning of the fourth year by 203,000.
As Sergei Sobolev, then Deputy Minister of Economy, noted in early March 2023, the return of every 100,000 Ukrainians home results in a 0.5% increase in GDP.
In its July inflation report, the National Bank worsened its migration forecast: while in April it expected a net inflow of 0.2 million people to Ukraine in 2026, it now forecasts a net outflow of 0.2 million, which corresponds to the estimate of the net outflow this year. “Net return will only begin in 2027 (about 0.1 million people, compared to 0.5 million in the previous forecast),” the NBU added and confirmed this forecast at the end of October. In absolute terms, the National Bank estimates the number of migrants currently remaining abroad at about 5.8 million.
According to updated UNHCR data, the number of Ukrainian refugees in Europe as of December 11, 2025, was estimated at 5.311 million (5.331 million as of November 14), and 5.860 million (5.850 million) worldwide.
In Ukraine itself, according to the latest UN data for July this year, there are 3.340 million internally displaced persons (IDPs), compared to 3.757 million in April.
Sales of new buses (excluding minibuses) in Ukraine in January-September this year increased by 20% compared to the same period in 2024, reaching 613 units, of which 91% were small buses, according to Mykyta Haidamaha, head of the Temsa project at Auto-Region.
“2025 was a year of quiet but important changes for the Ukrainian bus market. After two years of uncertainty and declining purchases by the private sector, the market is gradually recovering – not thanks to large contracts or foreign investment, but through local decisions, municipal tenders, and transport renewal programs for communities,” he told Interfax-Ukraine.
He emphasized that school, municipal, and suburban transportation account for most of the demand and keep the market afloat, whereas five years ago, private carriers and travel companies were the main players.
In addition, businesses and private and state-owned enterprises use buses to transport personnel.
According to data provided by Haidamaha, domestic manufacturers were the leaders in the bus segment in January-September: Ataman from the Cherkasy Bus factory with 244 units, followed by ZAZ buses manufactured by the Zaporizhzhia Automobile Plant with 136 units, and in third place were Etalon buses manufactured by the Chernihiv Automobile Plant, with 120 units.
“This demand is facilitated by the school vehicle fleet renewal program, which continues even in wartime,” the expert noted.
At the same time, he noted unexpectedly active dynamics in the sales of large-class buses: in the first nine months of 2025, sales increased 2.7 times – to 37 units, or 6% of the market.
“Isuzu Citiport (20 units), Iveco Urbanway (5), and Troliga Pegasus (6) are reappearing on the roads, mostly in cities that are gradually upgrading their public transport,” said Haidamaka.
He added that the process is not yet large-scale, but it is indicative: city authorities are beginning to think of large buses not as a “luxury” but as an element of infrastructure. Technical requirements are also gradually changing—today, Euro6 diesel engines predominate, but electric solutions are being tested in parallel.
Another interesting factor, according to him, is passenger capacity: while the 16-25 seat segment remains the largest (68%), the 26-29 seat segment has become the most dynamic: its share has grown from 20% (25 units) in September 2024 to 35.8% (39 units) in September this year.
“Such buses are more convenient for suburban routes — more passengers without additional fuel costs, and carriers are looking for the right balance,” says Haidamaha.
Speaking about the presence of Turkish manufacturer Temsa’s buses on the market, he noted that seven buses of this brand were registered in Ukraine in nine months, compared to 15 last year, but the trend towards purchasing models with Euro6 engines continues, so there is a possibility that demand will grow.
Haidamaha also provided statistics on bus registrations by region – the most active is the Sumy region (65 units), followed by Kyiv (63), Lviv (53), and Mykolaiv (41) regions.
At the same time, the highest growth in registrations was in Rivne region (6.6 times), Ternopil region (5.5 times), Sumy region (2.8 times), and Lviv region (+71%).
“These are the regions where communities are most active in attracting state programs and grant funds. The capital, on the other hand, is the focus of imported supplies — more than 60% of Kyiv’s buses are of foreign origin,” he stressed.
Touching on the topic of electric buses, Haidamaka noted that only two electric buses were registered in the first nine months of 2025.
“They are already operating on routes. Ukrainian cities are only just forming the infrastructure for charging, and it is these isolated registrations that show the direction of movement towards the Green Deal,” Haidamaka believes.
In his opinion, 2026 will be a year of contrasts: school buses will remain a stable source of domestic demand, while city operators will gradually begin to transition to new environmentally friendly solutions — Euro6, hybrids, and electric.
Initial registrations of new and used buses (including minibuses) in Ukraine in September 2025 decreased by 6% compared to the same month last year, to 233 units, UkrAvtoprom reported on its Telegram channel.
Compared to August of this year, when 259 buses were registered, the market shrank by 10%.
The share of new vehicles in September’s volume was 58%, while last year it was 63%.
Domestic ZAZ buses took the lead among new buses with 38 vehicles registered, while in September 2024, these buses ranked third with 24 vehicles.
Second place went to new Ataman buses from the Cherkasy Bus factory, with 29 units, which also ranked second last year with sales of 37 vehicles.
Etalon buses came in third among new buses with 19 units, having been the leaders a year ago with 60 buses.
Among used buses, Mercedes-Benz was the most frequently registered in September with 49 units, followed by VDL and Van Hool with 8 units each.
According to UkrAvtoprom, a total of 1,888 buses were added to Ukraine’s bus fleet in January-September 2025 (+33% compared to the same period in 2024). Of these, 935 were new (+16%) and 953 were used (+56%).
As reported, in 2024, initial registrations of new and used buses decreased by 19% compared to 2023, to 2,241 units, including new buses by 24%, to 1,296 units, and used buses by 12%, to 945 units.
Cherkasy Bus JSC may supply the National Police of Ukraine with 15 specialized Ataman D09216 buses for a total of ₴67.95 million, or ₴4.53 million per bus.
According to information in the Prozorro electronic public procurement system, the company was the only participant in the tender, offering buses at the expected purchase price.
The delivery date is December 15 of this year. Full payment is due within 90 banking days. The buses will be manufactured in 2025.
The contract is currently awaiting signature.
Cherkasy Bus is a regular supplier of such special buses to the National Police. In particular, in July last year, a contract was signed for the supply of 30 buses for UAH 124.07 million (or UAH 4.24 million per bus).
The Ataman D09216 special-purpose bus, built on Japanese Isuzu chassis, is 8.2 m long, equipped with a Euro 5 diesel engine, has 30 seats (plus the driver’s seat), and air conditioning in the driver’s and passenger compartments.
The bus is designed to transport National Police personnel without combat equipment (weapons, body armor, etc.).
Cherkasy Bus guarantees the readiness and availability of bus maintenance and repair services and has 35 service centers throughout Ukraine.
Founded in 1994, the Cherkasy Bus factory manufactures small and medium-sized Ataman buses, as well as other wheeled vehicles based on Japanese Isuzu components.
According to the company’s financial report on its website, in 2024, it reduced its net profit by a third to UAH 122.1 million, while its net income increased by 2.6% to UAH 1 billion 771 million.
Yurmash (Kyiv), a company with foreign investment whose main specialization is the supply of foreign construction and road equipment, may supply five Euromash intercity buses (three of which are upgraded) to NAEK Energoatom for UAH 22.91 million, with an expected value of UAH 24.37 million.
According to a report in Prozorro, the company was the only participant in the tender for the purchase of buses, although the customer specified AR-TEMSA PRESTIJ SX buses (or equivalent) as the subject of the purchase.
Auto-Region, the exclusive distributor of Turkish Temsa buses in Ukraine, did not participate in the tender.
According to the documents provided, the Euromash B AC 6768 bus with improved equipment is 7.5 m long, designed for 29+1 seats with seat belts and a seat reclining system, equipped with a 2.97 L Euro 6 diesel engine.
In particular, the bus has an autonomous heater, air conditioning with individual deflectors for each row of seats on both sides.
Additional options, unlike the standard configuration, include USB sockets in the backrests of the front row seats, a microphone, an LSD TV, and a rear view camera.
A letter signed by the company’s CEO states that “the company will use only its own production facilities to manufacture the product,” while the localization certificate states that “the degree of localization is equal to or exceeds the degree of localization for the corresponding year” (in 2025, the law requires 25% localization), but the specific degree is not specified.
The company’s website and open sources do not provide information on the components used in Euromash buses.
Previously, the company offered Euromash (Dongfeng) pickups in tenders. The company is the official dealer of the Chinese Dongfeng in Ukraine.
The company’s website states that it was established in 2004 and is one of Ukraine’s leaders in the import, warranty, and post-warranty service of imported road construction and quarry equipment.
The company is the exclusive dealer of Hitachi construction equipment and an official dealer of BELL, Terex Finlay, Ammann, Furukawa, and Sullair.
According to opendatabot, the ultimate beneficiary of LLC with II “Yurmash” is entrepreneur Anna Pokotilova.
The company’s net income in 2024 increased 1.9 times compared to 2023, to UAH 507.6 million, with a net profit of UAH 3.6 million compared to UAH 0.9 million a year earlier. Before the war in 2021, the company’s revenue amounted to UAH 1.2 billion, and the number of employees was 457, compared to 162 the previous year.
