Editing Transport in Malta (section)

===Buses===
[[File:Maltesisk buss 1.jpg|thumb|Traditional Maltese bus]]
[[File:Malta Buses (cropped).jpg|thumb|Modern buses at Valletta City Gate Bus Station]]
{{main article|Malta bus}}
[[Bus]]es are the primary method of public transport for the Maltese Islands and have been in operation there since 1905, offering a cheap and frequent service to many parts of Malta and [[Gozo]]. The vast majority of buses on Malta depart from a terminus in [[Valletta]]. Malta's buses carried over 40 million passengers in 2015.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20160724/local/bus-passengers-increase-by-20-per-cent.619740 |title=Bus passengers increase by 20 per cent since introduction of card system|date=24 July 2016 }}</ref>

The traditional classic Maltese buses, which were in operation until 2011 and still provide tourist-oriented services to this day, have become visitor attractions in their own right due to their uniqueness, and are depicted on many Maltese advertisements to promote tourism as well as on gifts and merchandise for tourists. Prior to their reform there were approximately 500 buses in public transit service, most of them privately owned by the bus drivers themselves, and operated to a unified timetable set by the transport authority. On any one day, half the bus fleet worked on the public transport network (called "route buses"), while the other half were used for private tours and school transport.

In July 2011 a new public transport network was installed by [[#Transport Malta|Transport Malta]] (the regulating authority) and on 3 July 2011 it started being operated by [[Arriva Malta]], which was owned by [[Arriva]] (67%) and [[Tumas Group]] (33%), operating as the sole operator on a 10-year contract and running a new 264-strong fleet of buses in a turquoise and cream livery. Unlike the system it replaced, the buses were owned and operated by a single company with the drivers working as employees of Arriva Malta.

When Arriva ceased operations on 1 January 2014 due to financial difficulties, the company was nationalised as Malta Public Transport by the Maltese government as an interim measure while a new bus operator could be found.<ref>{{cite news|title=Arriva Future Decided|url=http://www.di-ve.com/news/arriva-future-decided|access-date=26 October 2014|work=di-ve.com news|date=22 November 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Sansone|first1=Kurt|title=New Year in, Arriva out|url=http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20131223/local/New-Year-in-Arriva-out.500112#.UsNt0PRDvCt|access-date=26 October 2014|work=[[Times of Malta]]|date=23 December 2013}}</ref> As of October 2014 the government has chosen Autobuses Urbanos de León ([[Alsa (bus company)|Alsa]] subsidiary) as its preferred bus operator for the country, and although the agreement has yet to be fully determined and signed, it is planned that they will being operation in January 2015.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Dalli|first1=Kim|title=New bus operator to start in January|url=http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20141001/local/New-bus-operator-to-start-in-January.537947|access-date=26 October 2014|work=[[Times of Malta]]|date=1 October 2014}}</ref>

During the closing days of December 2014, the [[Times of Malta]] and other newspapers were reporting that the company had now signed contracts and purchased the existing operation for 8 million euros.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20141220/local/update-3-new-public-transport-provider-to-take-over-bus-service-on-january-8.548966|title=Update 3: New public transport provider to take over bus service on January 8|work=Times of Malta|date=20 December 2014 |access-date=12 June 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/47659/spanish_public_transport_operators_to_take_over_on_january_8_|title=Spanish public transport operators to take over on January 8|work=MaltaToday.com.mt|access-date=12 June 2015}}</ref> They duly took over the business on January 8, 2015 with their takeover being effected as a "soft launch". The existing name - Malta Public Transport - is to be retained instead of using Autobuses Urbanos de León and nothing will have changed from a passenger perspective initially. The buses are to be repainted into a new livery of light green and white and during a press announcement to mark the formal takeover of operations on the day, several repainted buses were lined up for a photo call to show off the new livery, these being two of the leased in 2014 [[Optare Solo]]s, one of the leased in 2014 Wright Volvos, one each of the new in 2011 [[King Long]] XMQ6900J and XMQ6127J buses. By February the sub contracted buses from UBS were replaced - temporarily - with 32 dual-door [[Mercedes-Benz Citaro]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20150131/local/update-2-malta-public-transport-says-there-will-be-no-disruptions-in-public-transport.554157|title=Update 2: Malta Public Transport says there will be no disruptions in public transport|work=Times of Malta|date=31 January 2015 |access-date=12 June 2015}}</ref> buses operated by ALESA (as opposed to the situation until then of sub contracting of both bus and driver from UBS) until new [[Otokar]] Vectio C dual-door single deck buses currently on order<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.otokar.com.tr/en-us/corporate/media/news/Pages/rhd-buses.aspx|title=First order of RHD buses to Otokar|access-date=12 June 2015}}</ref> have arrive later in 2015.  These new buses will number 142 in total and used to augment the existing fleet as the revised route network is incrementally rolled out during the course of 2015 with the full service planned not expected to be fully realized until 2016, at which time the 23 million euro subsidy for 2015 will rise to 29 million thereafter.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20150108/local/spanish-company-takes-over-bus-service.551080|title=Spanish company takes over bus service|work=Times of Malta|date=8 January 2015 |access-date=12 June 2015}}</ref>

In January 2019, the [[Government of Malta|Government]] has said that young people who are between 16 and 20-years old in 2018 can now travel by bus for free. People between 17 and 19-years old will travel for free between 1 January 2019 and 31 December 2019. The government also said that those who will turn 16 this year will start travelling for free on their birthday and will keep benefiting from the scheme until their 17th birthday. 20-year-olds will benefit until they reach 21.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20180110/community/aged-16-to-20-hop-on-the-free-public-transport-bus.667631|title=Aged 16 to 20? Hop on the free public transport bus|last=Ltd|first=Allied Newspapers|website=Times of Malta|date=10 January 2018 |language=en-GB|access-date=2019-01-14}}</ref>

Since October 2022 public transport (which includes buses) in Malta and Gozo has been free of charge for all residents with a Tallinja Card (a personalised public transport card), of which any Malta resident can register for.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/budget-2022-free-bus-service-for-all-by-next-year.907165 | title=Budget 2022: Free bus service for all by October 1 next year | date=11 October 2021}}</ref><ref name="European Commission">{{cite web |url= https://urban-mobility-observatory.transport.ec.europa.eu/news-events/news/malta-introduces-free-public-transport-2022-10-13_en?prefLang=nl |title= Malta introduces free public transport |date= 13 October 2022 |website= European Commission |access-date= 23 September 2024}}</ref>