Malta received 100 new diesel buses, short of a 2023 government promise to introduce the same number of electric buses for public transportation. The shift away from electrification is attributed to the Government’s withdrawal from a previously committed pool of EU funds designated for sustainable transport initiatives.
According to opposition transport spokespersons, the move has cost €7 million in EU funds intended for the installation of electric bus charging stations. Another €50 million of possible private investment – money that would have funded Malta’s shift towards a greener economy, reduced noise pollution, and made the air cleaner – are lost.
“These buses operate day and night across our villages and towns,” said Shadow Minister of Transport and Mobility Mark Anthony Sammut. “We should have switched to electric with the fleet. Today, we are left breathing carcinogenic diesel fumes every time one such bus passes by.”
The Opposition has criticised what it describes as a lack of transparency, as an attempt by the Government to keep under wraps the arrival of the diesel buses, a number of which are already being put into service. The buses allegedly arrived in Malta mere hours before the statement was released.
This decision indicates a broader pattern of incompetence,” Shadow Minister for EU Funds David Agius said. “Malta is not only falling behind in climate action but is also failing to capitalize on EU resources that exist to benefit the public”.
The Nationalist Party, nevertheless, reconfirmed its commitment to a completely electrified mass transport system, if it were elected, promising a cleaner, quieter, and more reliable service. Shadow Climate Change Minister Eve Borg Bonello said that the emphasis is on good governance, assuring that, under a new government, EU funds would be managed responsibly and in the public interest.
The government has issued no public statement concerning the provision of the diesel buses or the Opposition’s claims.
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