The Bali authorities have received 11 electric buses and six charging stations for them.
The buses will run on the first corridor of the Trans Sarbagita bus network, from the Ngurah Rai Sports Complex (GOR Ngurah Rai) in Denpasar to GWK park. Rides will be free during the trial phase.
The handover took place on 22 October in Renon. The gift was first reported in April 2025, when the plan was for ten buses.
The electric buses have Korean Hyundai chassis, while the bodies and interiors were built by the Indonesian manufacturer Laksana in Semarang. Inside there are about 20 seats and room for roughly 10 standing passengers. On the outside, the buses are black, red and white.
The route passes through the Udayana University campus. A consultants' study found it to be the most suitable. The regular Trans Sarbagita buses will stay on the line, and the new ones will run alongside them. Not all 11 buses will be in service at once; some will be kept in reserve.
Three of the stations are at the provincial transport agency's depot, where the electric buses will charge overnight. The other three are at the Ngurah Rai Sports Complex, where batteries can be topped up during the day between runs.
The trial phase is expected to last until around December 2026, and rides will be free throughout. Even during these months, passengers will still need to tap an electronic card on the reader when boarding, as this is how ridership is counted.
For now, the electric buses are registered as official vehicles and carry red number plates. Fares are to be introduced once they are re-registered as public transport with yellow plates. The fare is promised to be the same as on Trans Sarbagita and the red Trans Metro Dewata buses: 4400 rupiah.
The provincial transport agency is still selecting an operator for the line, and drivers will be trained to work with the new vehicles. There is no exact date yet for the first passenger services.
Kuta also plans to introduce electric buses: shuttles from the central car park to the beach. A trial route there is promised to open in 2027.
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