In recent years, electric cars have started coming in, and EV adoption among consumers is already starting to rise. While that’s all well and good, the entry of mass-market electric vehicles also begs another related question: “What about public transport?”
With the automotive industry continuing to push electrification, it’s high time that the public transport sector does the same. But we’d like to think that’ll happen sooner rather than later, as Victory Liner has gotten the ball rolling with the arrival of its first electric buses in the Philippines.
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The company claims that these are the first in the country, and while we’re not sure whether or not someone will dispute that claim, we’re certain Victory Liner’s buses will be the first to ply an actual PUV route—through testing or otherwise.
According to an ABS-CBN news report, the Higer-branded buses cost P5 million each, which was supposedly a ‘special price,’ while the wall chargers cost P500,000 each. There should also be no differences between these electric buses and the regular petrol-powered ones, only the former should ride better and quieter.
Victory Liner president and general manager Marivic H. Del Pilar shared during the unveiling of the new EV buses that the Philippines still isn’t ready for mass charging, which is why the company will run a short-distance Cubao-San Fernando route with end-to-end charging stations for now. Fare for this trip is pegged at P141.
No timeline yet was provided for the full rollout of these electric buses, but expect to see them plying the northern tollways real soon.
