Five more 100% electric STCP buses are already on the mobility route of the future

Five more fully electrically powered buses are already circulating throughout the network, which the Sociedade de Transportes Coletivos do Porto (STCP) acquired to reach the target of 40% of an all-electric fleet by the end of the decade. In two years, the intercity company plans to have 76 vehicles of this type and more than double that number by 2027. The new vehicles have a 250 kilometres autonomy and will allow a reduction of 441 tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year.

With the goal of the 40% completely assumed, the mayor of Porto states that “this path starts now”. “Acquiring these buses represents a joint effort to contribute to the climate and energy transition, an issue in which cities are called to assume a proactive and, I would even say, a leadership role”.

These new buses are part of a batch of 86 vehicles acquired under the II POSEUR Notice (Programa Operacional Sustentabilidade e Eficiência no Uso de Recursos), joining the 188 “green” buses that the company already uses. Rui Moreira believes that “this gradual renewal has allowed STCP to operate an increasingly more efficient fleet in economic and environmental terms and significantly reduce carbon emissions”.

For the mayor of Porto, this environmental sustainability “only makes sense if we also guarantee social sustainability”, since “investing in qualified public transport is the best way for us to redistribute wealth among our citizens”.

Rui Moreira underscored the city’s commitment to “free public transportations for up to 18 years of age, going beyond the costs of the PART (Programa de Apoio à Redução Tarifária nos Transportes) because we believe that this investment contributes to changing generational behaviour”.

In what was the first public ceremony since the conclusion of STCP intermunicipalisation process, earlier this year, the mayor of Porto left a note that “we have not forgotten where we come from”, regarding the announcement of the “destruction of STCP through the passage to private individuals without the minimum of conditions”.

“Of the utmost importance was that STCP would be cheap to transport few passengers and this change of paradigm is due to this government and to this minister in particular”, enhanced Rui Moreira, believing that the solution found “has enabled public transport to be aligned with the best international practices”. The intermunicipalisation of STCP is a very virtuous example of decentralisation of competences”, he believes.

As of today, STCP passengers are driven in 420 buses: 79% run on natural gas, 5% on electricity, and only 16% on diesel.