Some 30 vehicles provided by the Unscheduled Bus Service (UBS) will be off the road as from today after its contract expired.
They will be replaced by second-hand Mercedes buses that the new Spanish operator Autobuses de Leon has imported from the UK. So far, only five of the planned temporary fleet of 32 have arrived in Malta.
UBS chief executive Ray Bartolo said yesterday the contract had not been renewed despite the great shortage of buses.
UBS, he said, had worked closely with the authorities to provide buses, primarily low floor, to make up for the shortage, after former operator Arriva stopped operations in Malta in January last year. UBS also continued to provide the service when Autobuses de Leon took over on January 8 on the understanding that the new operator had to receive second-hand buses from the UK.
Company expects 200 new drivers by end of the year
UBS was asked to continue providing a service due to a continued shortage of buses, but there was disagreement on the conditions.
Mr Bartolo refused to reveal details, but said UBS had done its utmost to serve the public. Its members had even purchased a large number of low floor buses, he said.
There was no mention of this problem when Autobuses de Leon chairman Felipe Cosmen addressed the media yesterday morning to announce the arrival of the first five buses out of 32 that will form the temporary fleet until the new fleet arrives in summer. No further details were given.
More buses are expected to arrive in the coming days, he said, adding that the company will gradually increase to a fleet of around 360 buses over the contract period.
He explained that the 12-metre buses were fitted with Euro5 engines and their air-conditioning system had been upgraded.
The buses, which have been leased for a year, have a door at the front for boarding and one at the back for alighting passengers, which, he said, was expected to improve overall journey times.
Mr Cosmen said the recruitment process for drivers was under way. Some 70 drivers are currently undergoing training. By the end of the year the company expects to have 200 new drivers.
Priority is being given to local people who know the roads but the company does not rule out turning to foreigners if the need arises.
In a statement later on, Malta Public Transport said that there will be no service disruptions tomorrow since the company had made arrangements to bring other subcontractors on board until the 32 newly-leased buses arrive in Malta over the next four weeks.