Fifty new buses were put into service on Friday, bringing the Malta Public Transport fleet to 428.

A total of €11 million were invested in the new buses, which all have a Euro 6 engine, making them more environmentally sustainable.

The new buses are also more accessible, provide users with the possibility to charge their mobile phone and can take up to 100 passengers.

Prime Minister Robert Abela said during a visit to the new buses at the Park and Ride in Marsa that the quality of public transport in Malta had taken a leap forward in the past years and the people had reacquired confidence in the service.

In the first two months of the year, he said, buses had provided transport for around 4.5 million passengers each month, a 19% increase or an average of one million more passengers each month when compared to 2019.

This success was due to the reform that had been implemented which included routes that served the people, an increase in efficiency and a service of the highest level.

Public Transport Minister Ian Borg said the investment was making the Maltese fleet one of the cleanest and youngest. He said that by the end of 2019, a total of 60,000 people benefited from free transport through the Bus20+ and the Bus75+ initiatives.