No plans to use numerous electric buses in near future

Macau will not operate a large number of electric buses in the near future, according to Director of the Transport Bureau (DSAT) Lam Hin San.

On the sidelines of a talk at the University of Macau, Lam told the media that currently authorities are testing some electric buses. However, “it is not economical for us to run such buses to serve the people [at the current stage],” he said, “because I think the facility requests a high subsidy relative to that of the traditional buses. Second [is] the weight of the buses. Sometimes the battery can be tonnes extra as compared to traditional buses,” added Lam.

“We notice that in the market, there are many more new electric buses available, we want to test, and make sure they are good for Macau, because in Macau, its very difficult for us to make the charging stations,” said Lam.

According to the Director, DSAT will try to launch some [new type of] electric buses by the end of this month or next month, “to see the results.”

Regarding whether Macau will introduce a large number of electric buses, Lam said “at the moment, there is no plan yet, we want to make sure that the test of these buses is okay for us. Don’t forget that we have also coordinated work with the casinos to test some new e-buses. I think they can also share their experiences with us.”

He also remarked that the government will use more electric buses “in the long run, yes, but not in the near future. […] At least, five to 10 years.”

“The problem is the charging stations, and that is very difficult to make charge stations,” said Lam.