The Spanish operator entrusted with running the bus service from January has to order 140 new vehicles to cover a revamped route network, according to the Transport Minister.
Joe Mizzi yesterday said Autobuses de Leon would start operations “sometime in January”, but commuters would not witness a major overhaul on day one.
Autobuses de Leon would make “a soft entry”, avoiding the big-bang approach adopted when Anglo-German company Arriva started operating the bus service three years ago, Mr Mizzi added.
“To start with, the operator has to order 140 new buses [to run the full network as specified by Transport Malta] but the company will initially rent a number of vehicles to start implementing the route changes gradually.”
Autobuses de Leon will make a ‘soft entry’, avoiding the big-bang approach adopted by Arriva
Autobuses de Leon and Transport Malta were ironing out the final contractual details after the exercise was suspended last month pending the outcome of a court case that was instituted by a rival bidder.
Mr Mizzi said the agreement would be signed before the end of the year but could not give a date.
“The new operator is conscious of the problems Arriva faced and is being very cautious not to repeat the same mistakes,” he said.
The court this week rejected the arguments made by Island Buses, a consortium of Maltese companies that wanted to stop the award of the tender.
Mr Mizzi said the first changes would include the ticketing infrastructure and tracking systems on buses to keep tabs on timeliness.
Autobuses de Leon would also provide simulators to provide professional training to new and existing bus drivers.
The Spanish company will be receiving €23 million in subsidies for the first year, which is more than double the amount the former bus company received in its last year of operation.
For the past year, the bus service has been run by State company Malta Public Transport Services after Arriva was nationalised in January.
Arriva ran into serious financial difficulties two-and-a-half years into its 10-year contract and decided to pull out by mutual agreement with the government.