Rethink hydrogen bus use for Kuching ART – Chong

The Sarawak government should reconsider the proposed use of hydrogen fuel cell buses as first- and last-mile feeders for the Kuching autonomous rapid transit (ART) trackless tram public transport system, member of the Sarawak State Legislative Assembly (SLA) for Padungan Chong Chieng Jen has said, according to a report by The Star.

He said 10 city authorities around the world, including Perth, Vancouver, Sao Paulo, Hamburg, Wiesbaden, Pau and Montpellier, have trialled hydrogen buses and decided to go for battery-electric buses instead.

“The main reason is that the operation of hydrogen buses is many times more expensive than electric buses,” Chong said while debating the 2025 state budget in the SLA yesterday. As such, he urged the state government to consider replacing the proposed hydrogen buses with electric buses, adding that the cost-benefit factor should be considered.

The ART will form the backbone of the Kuching Urban Transportation System (KUTS), and the trackless tram system will cover routes totalling 70 km over three rail lines and 31 stations in its first phase. Revenue services are expected to begin in stages from the fourth quarter of 2025, starting with the Blue Line (Line 1) from Rembus in Kota Samarahan to Hikmah Exchange in the centre of Kuching.

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