The carrier changed the route through an additional agreement — the court recognized it as effectively a new route without a competition

The issue of organizing passenger transportation and processing route documentation remains a subject of legal disputes. In a new decision, courts of two instances clarified how changes to transportation contracts should be formalized and what requirements apply to bus route passports.

The timetable is an integral part of the route passport, which contains information regarding the bus schedule along the route defined in the route scheme and the route characteristics; at the same time, the timetable must comply with legislative requirements.

Decision of the Eastern Commercial Court of Appeal

By the ruling dated 18.02.2026, the Eastern Commercial Court of Appeal overturned the decision of the Commercial Court of Kharkiv Region in case No. 922/2891/25 and issued a new decision partially satisfying the claim to recognize invalid the transaction made in the form of an additional agreement to the contract on organizing passenger transportation on general-use bus routes in part of clauses 1.1., 1.2. of Section 1 "Subject of the contract"; to recognize illegal the actions of the Enterprise regarding approval of the passport of the suburban regular bus route and its components without indicating the name of the bus station in them; and to oblige the Enterprise to restore the position that existed before the violation of the Society's rights by making changes to the route passport regarding the definition of bus station names in the route name and the names of bus stations from which buses should depart and arrive.

Conclusions of the appellate court

The appellate court noted, in particular, that contrary to the requirements of current legislation, by concluding the disputed additional agreement to the transportation contract concerning the change of an essential term regarding the subject of the contract, the defendants effectively opened a new suburban general-use bus route without assigning it a new number by the transportation organizer and without holding a competition for it, and without formalizing a new contract for organizing transportation with the corresponding passport, thereby violating the rights and legitimate interests of the claimant as a provider of bus station services and in receiving profit from providing such services. To effectively protect its violated right as the owner of the bus station through which the disputed route passes, the claimant lawfully filed a claim to recognize the mentioned actions of the carrier in approving the new route passport (which is a document defining the conditions for transportation on the respective bus route) as illegal. Due to the defendants extending the term of the transportation contract for the period of martial law in Ukraine and for one year from the date of its termination or cancellation, the validity period of the route passport is also extended.

Position of the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court, in a panel of judges of the Commercial Cassation Court, by ruling dated 18.06.2026, agreed with the appellate court's conclusion that the defendants, when concluding the additional agreement to the transportation contract, did not take into account the requirements of part four of Article 32 of the Law of Ukraine "On Motor Transport," paragraph 4 of clause 28 of the Rules for the Provision of Passenger Motor Transport Services approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine Resolution No. 176 dated 18.02.1997, clause 2.2 of the Procedure for Developing and Approving the Bus Route Passport approved by the Ministry of Transport and Communications of Ukraine Order No. 278 dated 07.05.2010, and clause 3.3 of the Procedure for Organizing Passenger and Baggage Transportation by Motor Transport approved by the Ministry of Infrastructure Order No. 480 dated 15.07.2013, which provide for the carrier's buses to enter the bus station, indicating the inconsistency of the relevant part of the additional agreement with these norms and, considering the requirements of Articles 203, 215 of the Civil Code of Ukraine, is grounds for recognizing it invalid in the part defined by the appellate court. The timetable is an integral part of the route passport, which contains information about the bus schedule along the route defined in the route scheme and route characteristics; at the same time, the timetable must comply with legislative requirements.

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