To provide an environmentally friendly commuting service to the people of Singapore, electric public buses will hit the roads from 2020, said the Land Transport Authority (LTA).
About 60 electric buses will be purchased from three suppliers as LTA announced the award of SGD50 million worth of contracts.
The first contract was given to BYD (Singapore) which will supply 20 single-deck electric buses worth of about SGD17 million.
ST Engineering Land Systems will supply 20 single-deck electric buses costing about SGD15 million to LTA.
The third contract was given to Yutong-NARI Consortium which will supply both 10 single-deck and 10 double-deck electric buses worth of SGD18 million.
“When deployed on the roads in 2020, commuters can expect quieter and smoother rides. Bus captains can also enjoy a more comfortable working environment,” said LTA in a press release.
“These buses will also be equipped with new Passenger Information Display Systems, which provide commuters with audio and visual information about their journey,” it added.
When evaluating the bids, various aspects of the participating tenderers were considered, such as their relevant experience, track records, technical capabilities, the flexibility of solutions, adherence to requirements and compliance with local regulations.
“These buses will help LTA understand the operational and technical challenges that come with the wider deployment and maintenance of electric buses under our tropical climate and traffic conditions, and enable us to calibrate our approach in adopting electric buses in the future,” said LTA.
“The 60 electric buses will progressively arrive in Singapore from next year, with the final batch delivered in 2020. Details of deployment of the buses will be announced closer to the implementation date,” it added.