KOTA KINABALU – The city here will see an electric bus pilot programme serving an 8.3km route between Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park in Sepanggar and Menara Kinabalu here after a seven-month delay from its intended launch last December.
Qhazanah Sabah Bhd’s (QSB) eBusKK service will see a six-month run, operating daily for free.
QSB executive director Mohd Shukor Abdul Mumin said a feasibility study on passengers and sustainability will be done during the pilot run, with the services to eventually be expanded.
“We want to get more input from the users and at the same time, study the behaviour of our consumers. This is in hope the data will be of use to us when we launch the full service next year,” he said after the launch of the pilot here today.
The flag-off was done by Sabah Community Development and Welfare Minister Datuk Shahelmey Yahya, while QSB CEO Ahmad Rizal Dahli, QSB chief strategic business development Al Zarefee Mohd Shukor, and senior manager Elaine Lo Wei Kwan were present.
Shukor said QSB is currently engaging with government agencies, and that the eBusKK would be part of the integrated bus system planned for the city.
He added that eBusKK has only one electric bus for the time being and the routes will be changed from time to time during the test run period.
The state-owned investment arm took delivery of the first electric bus last October as part of the company’s plan to support Sabah’s green public transportation plan.
QSB also plans to buy up to 50 buses once the feasibility study is completed.
Shukor did not explain the delayed implementation of the electric bus service but it was learnt that the hold up was due to technical reasons. – The Vibes, June 24, 2022
