The operation is set to enhance inter-municipal mobility across 15 municipalities in the CIMRBSE region, including Almeida, Belmonte, Celorico da Beira, Covilhã, Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo, Fornos de Algodres, Fundão, Gouveia, Guarda, Manteigas, Mêda, Pinhel, Sabugal, Seia, and Trancoso. This initiative aims to promote a more sustainable and efficient public transportation system, as highlighted by the Intermunicipal Community, based in Guarda, in a statement released today.
The contract was signed today in Lisbon by the president of CIMRBSE, Luís Tadeu, during a ceremony attended by the Minister of Environment and Energy, Maria da Graça Carvalho, and the Minister of Infrastructure and Housing, Miguel Pinto Luz, along with other government officials.
This funding will facilitate the purchase of 16 electric buses and an additional 15 hydrogen-powered buses to serve the public transportation network, covering 13 municipalities in the district of Guarda and three in the district of Castelo Branco.
To ensure the new fleet’s operability, eight dual electric chargers and one hydrogen refueling station will also be installed.
Plans also include community awareness initiatives and a monitoring program for the new vehicles, “reinforcing CIMRBSE’s commitment to innovation and sustainability in regional mobility.”
The Intermunicipal Community believes that this investment marks “another significant step towards modernizing inter-municipal public transport, ensuring better mobility conditions for citizens and promoting the transition to a more eco-friendly and efficient transport model.”
The government also signed contracts today for the acquisition of 389 new electric buses, financed through the reprogramming of the PRR, expected to operate in over 70 municipalities on the mainland by 2026.
According to the government, the purchase of these vehicles, funded by the Environmental Fund and the reallocation of PRR funds, aims to “increase the fleet of zero-emission buses and expand the charging and refueling infrastructure network across the country.”
