On August 7th, at Terreiro das Missas in Belém, Carris presented 29 new electric buses that will enter service next week to support the back-to-school period. The vehicles, manufactured by the Chinese company Yutong, were funded by the Recovery and Resilience Plan through the Environmental Fund. With this acquisition, Carris now has 103 electric buses, meaning that more than 50% of the kilometers traveled will be covered by non-diesel vehicles.
The President of Carris, Rui Lopo, explained that the acquisition of these vehicles was at risk of not happening due to various issues, which could have led the company to lose the European funds. The process moved at an accelerated pace: the purchase decision was made on January 30th, the award on February 19th, the contract was signed on April 9th, the buses were ready in June, they arrived at Carris in July and were prepared in August. Rui Lopo publicly thanked the commitment of Carris teams and partners who worked during the month of August to make this happen.
The new buses are equipped with three doors to facilitate passenger exit, USB-A and USB-C ports at every seat, 360-degree camera mirror systems for drivers, ramps and space for wheelchairs and prams, priority seats, Wi-Fi and screens for on-board information. Carris has an ambitious fleet renewal program underway, planning to acquire 150 new buses per year, mostly electric, with the goal of a fully decarbonized operation by 2030.
The Mayor of Lisbon, Carlos Moedas, was present at the presentation and emphasized that the funding is European money, thanking Europe. Moedas highlighted that in 2021, 70% of the city's buses ran on fossil fuels, and that this number is now below 50%. The company currently has 379 diesel buses, 145 fewer than five years ago. With the arrival of the new vehicles, it will be possible to retire the older vehicles, providing a more reliable and comfortable service. Lisbon is one of the 100 cities that signed a climate contract with Europe for carbon neutrality by 2030.
