210 million bus passengers last year
The Transport Bureau (DSAT) has announced that Macau recorded a daily average of around 590,000 public bus passengers last year, “basically close to” the level recorded in pre-pandemic 2019.
The bureau announced the data in a statement on its WeChat account on Tuesday.
The city recorded a total of over 210 million public bus passengers last year, the statement.
According to DSAT data on its website, the city’s daily average number of public bus passengers reached 627,200 in 2019, based on which, last year’s daily average passenger number returned to around 94 percent of the 2019 level.
Last year, Macau saw the highest daily number of public bus passengers on September 23, at 695,963, while 2019’s highest daily numbers of passengers stood at 762,710, on October 4, 2019, according to the DSAT data.
During the three-year COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 through 2022, the city’s daily average number of public bus passengers stood at 454,700, 529,400 and 461,600 respectively, according to the DSAT data on its website.
Back in 2011, the city only had a daily average of 371,300 public bus passengers, according to the DSAT website.
New energy buses
The statement also said that at the end of last year, the city’s two public bus operators had a total of 673 new energy buses in operation, accounting for 65 percent of all public buses.
According to DSAT data on its website, at the end of September last year the two public bus operators had a total of 1,038 buses, of which 668 were new energy vehicles (NEVs), comprising 50 natural gas buses and 618 extended-range electric buses.
According to the DSAT data, the two public bus operators only had 56 extended-range e-buses in 2021, while the number increased to 416 in 2022.
Meanwhile, the statement also said that at the end of last year, Macau had a total of 1,516 taxis in operation, while 7,939 people were holding a valid taxi-driving licence.
The city’s taxis include 300 special radio taxis.
This photo taken on New Year’s Eve shows public buses at bus stops outside the Macau-Hengqin joint checkpoint. – Photo: Tony Wong
