Osaka Metro Discontinues Use of Chinese-Made Electric Buses for Expo Due to Frequent Problems

Japan's Osaka Metro has decided to stop using a fleet of 190 electric buses produced by a Chinese manufacturer, which were purchased in recent years, due to frequent accidents and problems. Some of the buses were intended as transportation during the Osaka Expo and began being moved from their storage location yesterday. According to the Asahi Shimbun, Osaka Metro purchased the electric buses between fiscal years 2022 and 2024. They were produced by a Chinese manufacturer commissioned by a Japanese dealership. Of these, 150 were to operate at and around the World Expo (Osaka-Kansai Expo) venue, while the other 40 were for on-demand services within Osaka city. The Japanese dealership is EV Motors Japan (EVMJ), headquartered in Kitakyushu City. However, due to the frequency of accidents and issues, Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism sent personnel to EVMJ last October to investigate. EVMJ also recalled 85 of the electric buses. Osaka Metro noted that 35 of these were used at the Expo venue. After another inspection earlier this year revealed more problems, Osaka Metro decided to discontinue the use of these electric buses, abandoning plans to use them as public buses and for autonomous driving trials. Since last December, Osaka Metro has been storing over 100 of these electric buses on a site in Joto-ku, Osaka, a location mockingly described by Japanese netizens as a "graveyard." The two small electric buses moved out yesterday had been used at the Expo venue. Mainichi Broadcasting System (MBS) reported that Osaka Metro began moving the Chinese-made electric vehicles from the storage site to outside Osaka Prefecture yesterday, with plans to move all of them by the end of June. It is currently unclear where they will be transported. Osaka Metro had previously used national and Osaka prefectural subsidies to spend approximately 7.5 billion yen on these buses. The original plan was to use them as regular public buses after the Expo, but successive failures, such as brake malfunctions, led Osaka Metro to abandon the project, citing the difficulty of ensuring safety. Osaka Metro plans to demand a refund from the dealership. However, the dealer (EVMJ) announced last month that it had initiated civil rehabilitation proceedings that month, with reported total liabilities of 5.7 billion yen.