The Transport Ministry said today that it was premature for it to comment on the subsidy that would be given to the new bus service operator since talks were still underway.

The Sunday Times of Malta reported three days ago that  the deal with Autobuses Urbanos de Leon (ALESA) had been practically wrapped up and the Spanish company was expected to be given an annual subsidy of between between €24 and €29 million.

The Transport Ministry said it was considering a bid that was substantially lower than the bids made by other companies following the call for expressions of interest.

It pointed out that the former operator (Arriva) had asked for a government subsidy of €45 million to continue to operate the service. The government had not been obliged to pay such a sum for a service which was not up to the required standard.

The government’s purpose, the ministry said, was for Malta to have an efficient bus service which met the people’s needs through more route kilometres. The government also acknowledged that this was an important service with a social purpose. Therefore one needed to balance the economic and social aspects in order not to have a repetition of the sad Arriva story.

The ministry pointed out that when it took office, Arriva Malta was already bankrupt even though the previous government had increased the subsidy given to it.

The present government had saved the job of hundreds of bus service workers and kept the service going smoothly in a transitory period until a new operator was selected.

“The government is determined to do whatever possible for the bus service to be viable and affordable for everyone,” the ministry said.