EV buses join Perth's wider suburban network, 'milestone' for diesel phase-out

Australia Broadcast Center

21 hours ago

The first fleet of electric buses has entered Perth's wider suburban network, with the WA Transport Minister Rita Saffioti labelling it an important milestone in the government's push to phase out diesel.
Eleven of the electric vehicles are ready to operate out of Transperth's Malaga depot, which is undergoing a $12 million upgrade to allow for the new infrastructure.
Sixteen chargers have already been installed at the depot and a further 90 are expected to be added by the end of September.
According to the government, the upgrade will see the depot become the state's largest EV bus charging complex, and has already included the installation of solar panels and batteries to power the facility.
"A few weeks ago we announced the last diesel bus to come out of the Malaga depot in relation to its manufacture, so the last diesel bus produced in WA has already occurred."
The minister said it was hoped the final diesel bus would exit the network by 2043.
The electric buses use imported parts from Sweden, before being locally assembled at another facility in Malaga.
Ninety of them set to be deployed across Perth over the next eight months.
Each electric bus can travel up to 300 kilometres on a single charge, which the government said saved about 40 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions a year.
High frequency bus routes, like the 960 and 950, will be among the first to be serviced by the fleet at the Malaga depot, alongside routes passing through the Morley Galleria shopping centre and Ballajura and Morley train stations.
An initial rollout of the vehicles began in Perth's CBD last September, with 18 added to the CAT Bus routes, which also saw Elizabeth Quay Bus Depot fitted out with new charging infrastructure.
Ms Saffioti said EV upgrades to other depots were already underway, or planned for, at the Karrinyup and Claisebrook bus depots, with a new EV bus depot set for Bayswater.
"Not only are electric buses cleaner and better for the environment, they're also cheaper to operate in the long term, which means better value for money for WA taxpayers," Ms Saffioti said.
"It's 22,000 litres of diesel per bus per year, so massive savings."
The Liberals said they would be watching the rollout of the new buses closely.
"We are obviously looking to see how that rollout goes, noting there have been some concerning issues with the C-series trains that have been manufactured on this government's watch," shadow cabinet minister Liam Staltari said.
Mr Staltari was referring to a recent union survey of train drivers that highlighted concerns over the comfort and braking ability of the C-series trains.
In response, the Public Transport Authority said there were no braking issues on the trains, stating the C-Series had excellent acceleration and braking features.
In parliament, Ms Saffioti defended the C-series and said there was always going to be an adjustment period for the drivers.