Good practice:

Pre-testing of e-bus as a training for drivers and technical staff prior to the launch of pilot

This was the first time that an electric bus was tested in the Maltese islands. The driving technique, operational characteristics and the problem-solving techniques of electric buses were still new to the transport operator staff. The pre-testing served as training for the staff to familiarise themselves to electric buses.

Part of the training for drivers who were going to drive the electric bus during the TAM electric bus pilot project involved driving the bus on a test route to get familiar with the bus before boarding any passengers. This can be considered as a Good Practice with regards to Health & Safety. Following the pre-testing, it was easier to identify the performance of the bus in certain uphill roads which were more challenging. This helped in choosing the routes that the electric bus would be operated on. The pre-testing also helped the technical staff to identify any common issues encountered during the pre-testing phase. In case of any technical failures the supplier of the bus was available to assist the technicians to resolve these errors. In case of damaged components, the supplier provided the necessary spare parts and guided the technicians on how they should be replaced.

The pre-testing served as training on electric buses for the drivers and technical staff. It also served to determine the ability of the bus to perform well in certain roads, before operating on that road with passengers.

The pretesting involved the drivers that drove the electric bus as well as the technical staff who worked to solve any technical issues of the electric bus. The operations staff had to analyse the performance of the bus in the pre-testing phase.

The pre-testing helped the transport operator staff to familiarise themselves with the operation of the electric bus. It served as training for drivers and technicians as well as an indicator of the ability of the bus to perform well in certain local roads (mainly uphills). The pre-testing phase reduced the passenger discomfort related to the driving techniques of the bus, since no passengers boarded the bus during the pre-testing phase.

Pre-testing done had to be varied per driver to be able to test different roads, thus the driving experience was not comparable. In some cases, the bus operated well during the pre-testing but during actual trips with passengers the bus did not respond well due to different operating conditions.

This good practice may be useful for other countries which still have not tested an electric bus. The pre-testing will help to identify the main challenges of the local conditions as well as to get familiarised with the operation characteristics of electric buses.