Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin has pledged a fleet of all-electric passenger buses by 2021 as he campaigns for re-election in September in what is predicted to be a one-sided vote.
Sobyanin is widely expected to win another term in office this Fall after the leading opposition candidates, Dmitry Gudkov and Ilya Yashin, have locked horns over who is a worthier challenger to Sobyanin. The Moscow region leads the country in vehicle emissions, accounting for one-eighth of all pollutants released by vehicles, an environment ministry report said in 2017.
“In 2021, we will stop buying regular buses entirely. We will purchase only electric buses,” Sobyanin said in a live call-in show on the TVC television channel.
The mayor touted his administration’s success in achieving a threefold decrease in municipal transportation emissions during his term.
This week, Sobyanin submitted a bill to local lawmakers seeking to expand the number of polling stations and drive up turnout, weeks after extending voting hours until 10 p.m.
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