The 36 buses being added to the Arriva fleet are on loan from European public transport operators and are fully compliant with all European environmental standards, the Transport Ministry said yesterday.

Replying to allegations made on Friday by Joseph Sammut, Labour Party spokesman for transport, the Ministry said that the criticism only went to show that the Opposition had no idea what European standards were.

Mr Sammut claimed that commuters in Malta were going to have to make do with buses that were not equipped as promised and which were harmful to the environment, despite the reform that should have improved things.

He was speaking about an agreement reached between the Ministry and public transport operator Arriva to add another 36 buses to the fleet that is obviously not meeting commuter expectations.

Dr Sammut said Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi and Austin Gatt had boasted that the bus fleet would be the most modern in the EU, but now regulations are being suspended so that inferior buses can be introduced in the service.

The Ministry said that there is no truth in claims that if Euro III and Euro IV buses are used for a while, then the buses are not in line with European standards, as Mr Sammut should have known.

If European standards demanded that only Euro V vehicles are used, anyone having a car manufactured before 2009 would have to scrap it. Euro III and Euro IV buses are a perfectly normal sight in European cities, and no country demands that vehicles that are just two years old must be scrapped.

The Ministry suggested that Mr Sammut look into the emission standards of his own car to see whether it is Euro V compliant, and if not consider whether he will get rid of it since to quote him, it “pollutes more”.

This is an urgent measure to avoid situations where, because of congestion or higher-than-expected demand, public transport users are not finding a place on buses.

The only way the government can insist on Euro V compliant buses is to make the operator order new ones or upgrade older ones, and both processes are time consuming and would mean that in the interim nothing is being done to tackle the problem of demand versus insufficient space on buses. The Ministry explained that demand is some 20 per cent higher than it was last year.

Nevertheless, TM and Arriva’s intention is to make this a temporary measure and to have all buses Euro V compliant. Notwithstanding this measure, the Maltese fleet remains one of the youngest and environmentally friendly in Europe, the Ministry said.