GEIS-新闻详情

Private electric buses using chargers in Bulim public bus depot in trial

2024-03-17 00:00:00.0 海峡时报-新加坡原网页

SINGAPORE – Two private bus companies are using the electric vehicle (EV) chargers located within a bus depot operated by Tower Transit under a small-scale trial, as operators iron out kinks over where and how to charge larger vehicles.

For six months, Leisure Frontier and Tong Tar Transport can use the EV chargers at Bulim Bus Depot in Jurong West when they are not being used by Tower Transit’s public buses. Tong Tar began using them in February, and Leisure Frontier is expecting to start by end-March.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said the trial is meant to assess if the chargers at the depot can be efficiently used by private operators when they are not needed for public buses.

Public buses are usually charged at night when they are no longer running, said an LTA spokesperson.

As the chargers are inside the depot, the private bus drivers must undergo safety protocol training before they can enter the premises, where Tower Transit has a workshop to maintain its vehicles.

The lack of charging infrastructure is a concern for private bus companies considering the switch to EVs from diesel vehicles. So far, efforts to build up Singapore’s EV charging infrastructure have been concentrated on private cars.

Mr Terence Ng, managing director of Leisure Frontier, said the company’s location in Woodlands Industrial Park E does not have sufficient power to support EV chargers.

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Instead, its fleet of five electric buses – a sixth is on the way – has to rely on third-party charging service operators, including high-speed chargers located on the fifth floor of a multi-storey industrial building in the Woodlands industrial area that were set up by Shell and Busways, an engineering firm.

While Leisure Frontier’s two smaller 13-seater Foton buses can use the same EV chargers at carparks for private cars, its three larger electric buses with 23 or more seats have only a handful of places to turn to due to their size.

The private bus companies transport students and workers, and run shuttle services and chartered services such as tours.

Tong Tar Transport has one charger at its own compound in Soon Lee Road in the Pioneer district. The operator has three electric buses, with another 12 on the way.

Both bus companies said they decided to buy electric buses in spite of the inconvenience and higher cost because they want to learn how to work with such vehicles. They expect EVs to eventually become the norm for their businesses in the future, replacing the diesel buses that dominate their current fleets.

Although there are no deadlines for private buses to be electric, Singapore wants half of the public bus fleet to be electrified by 2030. By 2040, public buses can be only EVs or hybrid-electric.