40 New Buses Will Be Added To Malta’s Roads In €9 Million Investment
Malta Public Transport has added 40 new buses as part of a €9 million investment geared towards increasing its capacity and efficiency, Transport Minister Ian Borg has announced.
“We want to make our vision for public transport clear, it needs to be efficient, consistent, and easily available,” Borg said.
The buses, which are all 12 metres long, are all environmentally friendly, Borg explained.
Through a variety of initiatives, the use of public transport has substantially increased with a total of 53 million people using buses in 2018.
The increase in capacity, Borg said, would allow Malta’s buses to operate a further 69,000 trips per year.
The fleet is jumping up to a total of 435 after ten 10 metre buses were removed.
An improved schedule on new routes will be revealed in the coming days. However, the Minister said that Fgura and the areas around Santa Venera were amongst those localities set to benefit.
The buses will also be fitted with a protection screen for drivers, in a bid to address growing security issues as reported by Lovin Malta.
Borg was quick to praise the work done in Malta’s public transport system, pointing out that the number of people using public buses in 2018 was almost doubled since 2011.
While insisting that his comparison wasn’t a political dig against the previous administration, Borg said that the government found a transport system that was in desperate need of substantial reform.
“We are happy with our results. We now need to encourage its use and introduce stronger investment and a wider strategy,” he said.
Public buses are already free for young people aged between 14 and 20, with Borg saying that there are plans to extend the free fare to the elderly and persons with disabilities.
The minister then referenced Central Link and other major roads projects as crucial to ensuring a much more efficient transport system.
