Electric Vehicles for Public Transport and Government Agencies

Mr Ang Hin Kee asked the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources whether the Ministry will consider requiring all public buses to be electric buses or to convert transport vehicles procured by the Government to run on electric energy.

Vehicles are one of the key local sources of air pollutants, including Particulate Matter (PM) and Nitrogen Oxides (NOx), which may cause lung cancer and chronic respiratory symptoms over the longer term. My Ministry commissioned a study last year to identify cleaner vehicular technologies suitable for Singapore, especially as alternatives to diesel vehicles. One of the findings of the study was that electrification was promising for many vehicle types, including buses. However, the study also surfaced the challenges, including higher costs, reduced carrying capacity, long charging times, limited travel range and disposal of used batteries.

To assess the feasibility of larger-scale deployment of alternative energy buses in Singapore, the Land Transport Authority will be conducting trials of 50 hybrid and 60 electric buses over the next two years.

Meanwhile, my Ministry is studying the feasibility of requiring Government agencies to use greener vehicles for their operations. We are currently evaluating the costs and the environmental impact of the different options available, including that of electric vehicles.