Australia urged to swap diesel for electric buses as fuel costs soar

## Summary
Photograph: NSW government Australia urged to swap diesel for electric buses as fuel costs soar Electric buses are just 1% of the Australian fleet compared with 80% in urban China, a quarter in the Netherlands and 12% in the UK Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Sign up for climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s free Clear Air newsletter here As diesel climbs past $3 a litre amid fuel security concerns, transport advocates are calling for the rollout of electric buses across Australia to be prioritised. Metro trams and trains mostly run on electricity, while buses – a core part of Australia’s public transport system – remain highly dependent on diesel, consuming about 530m litres a year. ‘Crazy not to’: soaring fuel prices send more Australians into U-turn towards electric cars Read more Industry body the Bus Industry Confederation wants buses to be prioritised in fuel security planning. “Buses carry more than half of Australia’s public transport passengers,” the confederation’s executive director, Varenya Mohan‑Ram, said. “Fuel security is not just an operational matter. It is a matter of social equity and community resilience. “We’re taking kids to school, we’re getting people to work,” he said. “We are the lifeblood of regional Australia, in terms of keeping people connected. “We just don’t have enough electric buses to carry Australians every day.” In Australia, nearly 42,800 diesel buses were registered in 2025, compared with 629 that were battery electric – about 1% of the heavy bus fleet – according to government data . Photograph: James Ross/AAP “E-buses are by far the most impactful way to cut emissions from public transport,” said Cameron Rimington, a senior policy officer at the Electric Vehicle Council. “The benefits of electric buses aren’t contained to carbon emissions,” he said. “Every bus running on Australian-made electricity is a bus that isn’t dependent on the strait of Hormuz, isn’t spewing exhaust into our communities, isn’t contributing to lung cancer or childhood asthma, and they’re so much quieter – for commuters and communities alike.” Helen Rowe, the transport lead at Climateworks Centre, said public transport was a critical service, and buses running on electricity were resilient against fuel shocks.

## Article Content
Electric buses charge at the Brookvale depot in Sydney. Australia’s bus fleet is dependent on diesel but most states and territories have transition targets.
Photograph: NSW government
View image in fullscreen
Electric buses charge at the Brookvale depot in Sydney. Australia’s bus fleet is dependent on diesel but most states and territories have transition targets.
Photograph: NSW government
Australia urged to swap diesel for electric buses as fuel costs soar
Electric buses are just 1% of the Australian fleet compared with 80% in urban China, a quarter in the Netherlands and 12% in the UK
Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates
Sign up for climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s free Clear Air newsletter here
As
diesel climbs past $3 a litre
amid fuel security concerns, transport advocates are calling for the rollout of electric buses across Australia to be prioritised.
In Australia, just 1% of buses are electric, compared with 80% of the urban fleet in China, a quarter in the Netherlands and 12% in the UK.
Metro trams and trains mostly run on electricity, while buses – a core part of Australia’s public transport system – remain highly dependent on diesel, consuming about
530m litres
a year.
‘Crazy not to’: soaring fuel prices send more Australians into U-turn towards electric cars
Read more
Industry body the Bus Industry Confederation wants buses to be prioritised in fuel security planning.
“Buses carry more than half of Australia’s public transport passengers,” the confederation’s executive director, Varenya Mohan‑Ram, said. “Fuel security is not just an operational matter. It is a matter of social equity and community resilience.
“We’re taking kids to school, we’re getting people to work,” he said.
“We are the lifeblood of regional Australia, in terms of keeping people connected.
“We just don’t have enough electric buses to carry Australians every day.”
In Australia, nearly 42,800 diesel buses were registered in 2025, compared with 629 that were battery electric – about 1% of the heavy bus fleet – according to
government data
.
Sign up to get climate and environment editor Adam Morton’s Clear Air column as a free newsletter
Most states and territories have targets to transition their fleets. Canberra and greater Sydney will be fully electric by 2040. E-buses already make up about 24% of the ACT’s fleet.
The ACT transport minister, Chris Steel, said: “Each electric bus is powered by 100% renewable electricity produced in Australia, they are cheaper to operate and not reliant on foreign fuels.”
South Australia will hit 81 e-buses this year – about 8% of the fleet – while Western Australia
rolled out its 100th
, and all new buses purchased in Victoria are electric.
View image in fullscreen
An electric bus at a charging depot in Melbourne. Rising fuel prices and uncertainty about supply make e-buses an attractive option, experts say.
Photograph: James Ross/AAP
“E-buses are by far the most impactful way to cut emissions from public transport,”
said Cameron Rimington, a senior policy officer at the Electric Vehicle Council.
“The benefits of electric buses aren’t contained to carbon emissions,” he said. “Every bus running on Australian-made electricity is a bus that isn’t dependent on the strait of Hormuz, isn’t
spewing exhaust
into our communities, isn’t contributing to lung cancer or childhood asthma, and they’re so much quieter – for commuters and communities alike.”
Helen Rowe, the transport lead at Climateworks Centre, said public transport was a critical service, and buses running on electricity were resilient against fuel shocks.
As well as purchasing vehicles, governments needed to plan for charging infrastructure, she said. In Victoria, bus company Kinetic recently opened a purpose-built depot with overhead charging infrastructure at Preston, in Melbourne’s north, while New South Wales has completed the first of 11 planned electric depot conversions.
Australia has been slower than other countries to get moving, but the current crisis, rising fuel prices and uncertainty about supply could change the cost-benefit calculation, making e-buses a more attractive option, RMIT University’s Prof Jago Dodson
said.
“From a simple security point of view, there’s probably a premium to be paid – to know that no matter what happens outside of Australia, we can still run our bus fleets on electricity,” he said.
Buses were also flexible, providing a
key opportunity
to respond to the crisis, Dodson said. They filled crucial gaps between fixed-line services and could be rolled out to meet demand and improve coverage in areas that are not currently well-serviced by public transport.
“It’s hard to roll out a rail line quickly,” he said.
Communities in Melbourne’s west have been campaigning for better bus access and services for years. They want winding and convoluted routes converted to a fast and efficient grid better able to serve local needs such as getting to the shops, school or train station.
Elys

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## Expert Analysis

### Merits
- Australia has been slower than other countries to get moving, but the current crisis, rising fuel prices and uncertainty about supply could change the cost-benefit calculation, making e-buses a more attractive option, RMIT University’s Prof Jago Dodson said. “From a simple security point of view, there’s probably a premium to be paid – to know that no matter what happens outside of Australia, we can still run our bus fleets on electricity,” he said.

### Areas for Consideration
N/A

### Implications
- Canberra and greater Sydney will be fully electric by 2040.
- The ACT transport minister, Chris Steel, said: “Each electric bus is powered by 100% renewable electricity produced in Australia, they are cheaper to operate and not reliant on foreign fuels.” South Australia will hit 81 e-buses this year – about 8% of the fleet – while Western Australia rolled out its 100th , and all new buses purchased in Victoria are electric.
- Photograph: James Ross/AAP “E-buses are by far the most impactful way to cut emissions from public transport,” said Cameron Rimington, a senior policy officer at the Electric Vehicle Council. “The benefits of electric buses aren’t contained to carbon emissions,” he said. “Every bus running on Australian-made electricity is a bus that isn’t dependent on the strait of Hormuz, isn’t spewing exhaust into our communities, isn’t contributing to lung cancer or childhood asthma, and they’re so much quieter – for commuters and communities alike.” Helen Rowe, the transport lead at Climateworks Centre, said public transport was a critical service, and buses running on electricity were resilient against fuel shocks.
- Australia has been slower than other countries to get moving, but the current crisis, rising fuel prices and uncertainty about supply could change the cost-benefit calculation, making e-buses a more attractive option, RMIT University’s Prof Jago Dodson said. “From a simple security point of view, there’s probably a premium to be paid – to know that no matter what happens outside of Australia, we can still run our bus fleets on electricity,” he said.

### Expert Commentary
This article covers buses, electric, australia topics. Notable strengths include discussion of buses. Readability: Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.0. Word count: 1042.