Two hydrogen-powered buses promised by March 2023 are nowhere to be seen
The Andrews government is refusing to explain where multiple missing zero-emissions buses are after promising they would be rolled out in Melbourne’s west in March this year.
Victoria
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The Andrews government is refusing to explain where two missing zero-emissions buses are six months on from when they were supposed to be rolled out.
Two hydrogen-powered buses that were set to hit Melbourne’s west in March this year as part of the state’s green bus fleet are nowhere to be seen.
In June last year, Public Transport Minister Ben Carroll announced the two hydrogen fuel cell buses and nine electric buses would operate from the Footscray depot from March 2023 as part of an expansion of the government’s $20 million zero emissions bus trial.
But on Monday – six months on from the March deadline – the minister wasn’t sure where the buses were.
“They should have been rolled out,” Mr Carroll said.
“If they haven’t they must be very close to.
“Let me come back to you and find out where they’re at.”
He said manufacturing the hydrogen-powered buses was “the easy part”, but plans to charge them up overnight were proving difficult.
The Department of Planning and Transport later confirmed with the Herald Sun that the hydrogen buses were yet to be rolled out.
They are now expected sometime in the coming months.
The trial buses were supposed to operate on 15 school services and 26 routes in the western suburbs including in Footscray, Sunshine, Yarraville, Newport, Melton, and Williamstown.
All new buses in Victoria’s public transport network will be required to be zero emissions by 2025.
Shadow minister for transport infrastructure David Southwick said the buses “have proven to be nothing more than a hollow promise”.
“Melbourne’s growing western suburbs remain stuck on substandard public transport because of the incompetence of the Andrews Government,” he said.
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