LatAm List – With the arrival of 100 new electric buses last month, Chile now has the second largest electric bus fleet in the world, after China. Santiago plans to have 200 electric buses in its fleet by the end of 2019.
Chile has a high abundance of copper and lithium, both needed for the batteries that run the buses, allowing the country to easily invest in these vehicles without depending on another country for materials. Chile is also strongly committed to improving its environmental outcomes, publishing a National Electromobility Strategy last year.
Chile was able to develop the bus plan through strong public-private partnerships between the government, the public transport system, Transantiago, and local electricity company, Enel. This agreement will allow Transantiago to replace up to 10% of the fleet with electric buses in the next 2-5 years.
Read more in The City Fix.
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