Moscow eyes fully electric bus fleet by 2030

Moscow's public transport is going green

The city plans to replace all petrol or diesel-powered public transport vehicles

with greener alternatives by 2030

Mosgortrans – which runs Moscow's bus and tram network

plans to quadruple the number of electric buses in coming years

SOUNDBITE) (Russian) DEPUTY OF INNOVATIVE PROJECT DEPARTMENT IN MOSGORTRANS STATE ENTERPRISE, ARTYOM BURLAKOV, SAYING:

"Nobody is going to get rid of good, still operational diesel buses, but the plan is to step by step replace all wheeled public transport with electric buses."

(SOUNDBITE) (Russian) PASSENGER, SOFIA (NO SURNAME GIVEN), SAYING:"I do not feel any difference between electric and diesel buses. It's a pity that e-buses will substitute trolleybuses which were great assets to the city. But in general, it's nice and cool that something modern and electric came to replace polluting petrol."

Latest stories

  • Dr Noor Hisham: Covid-19 vaccine registration also possible via hotline, website

    KUALA LUMPUR, March 5 — Malaysians may now register for Covid-19 vaccination through methods other than the MySejahtera application. Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah today...

  • Alaska's Iditarod sled dog race is on, with COVID-19-altered course

    The word "Iditarod" derives from an indigenous Alaskan name for a "far distant place." Due to precautions made necessary by the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, which starts on Sunday, will be an especially distanced event. The trail for the world’s most famous sled dog race has been drastically rerouted to avoid almost all the communities that normally serve as checkpoints, and the traditional ceremonial start in Anchorage has been eliminated.

  • Timelapse Shows 'Spectacular Sunset' in Texas

    The Austin/San Antonio National Weather Service office have released timelapse video of a "spectacular sunset’ from March 4, filmed from New Braunfels.This footage shows the sun dipping below the horizon as the sky reddens. Credit: NWS Austin/San Antonio via Storyful

  • Red Cross says volunteers hurt in Myanmar, urges halt to violence

    Red Cross volunteers have been injured while helping people hurt in violence in Myanmar, where security forces are cracking down on pro-democracy protests, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said on Friday. At least 55 people have been killed in Myanmar since a Feb. 1 military coup, according to a United Nations tally. More than 1,700 people have been arrested and many people, including medics, have been beaten by members of the security forces.

  • Debate to begin in U.S. Senate on Biden's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill

    A sharply divided U.S. Senate will begin a contentious debate on Friday on a $1.9 trillion coronavirus aid bill that is President Joe Biden's first major legislative initiative, with Democrats pressing ahead without any Republican support. The Senate voted on Thursday to take up the bill in a party-line 51-50 vote, with Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris breaking the tie. The Senate is expected to debate the bill three hours on Friday before considering a multitude of amendments, which could require a marathon voting session, before taking a vote on final passage in a process that could extend into the weekend.

  • 'Crazy' Lewandowski, Haaland clash as Bayern Munich host Dortmund

    Bayern Munich and their veteran striker Robert Lewandowski host Borussia Dortmund and their Norwegian top-scorer Erling Braut Haaland in Germany's 'Klassiker' on Saturday.

  • 'Feeling great': East Africa's biggest economy Kenya starts vaccinations

    Kenya began vaccinating people on Friday against COVID-19 with AstraZeneca shots hoped to help revive the battered tourism-dependent economy of East Africa's richest nation. "This may mark the beginning of the end of the pandemic," said Susan Mochache, a senior official at the health ministry. Nairobi received over a million AstraZeneca doses on Wednesday, the first of 3.56 million shots via the global, vaccine-sharing COVAX facility.

  • Kashmir’s copper craftsmen hope for better times after lockdown ends

    The end of lockdown brought some relief for Kashmir's traditional copper utensil makers, renowned for their immaculate craftsmanship, but their industry is under threat and their earnings low. Feeling the ever-increasing competition from modern gadgets and home appliances, artisans and sellers were dealt a severe jolt last year by a months-long lockdown imposed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Artisans, mainly based in the old quarters of Indian-administered Kashmir's summer capital Srinagar, engrave the traditional samovar used for boiling water, cutlery sets and other utensils considered a part of every Kashmiri family's heirlooms.

  • Supercomputer shows effectiveness of double masking

    Researchers used the Fugaku supercomputer to model the flow of virus particles from people wearing different types and combinations of masks, according to a study released on Thursday (March 4) by research giant Riken and Kobe University.Using a single surgical-type mask, made of non-woven material, had 85% effectiveness in blocking particles when worn tightly around the nose and face. Adding a polyurethane mask on top boosted the effectiveness to just 89%.Wearing two non-woven masks isn't useful because air resistance builds up and causes leakage around the edges.In general, professional grade N95 masks were the best in protecting against infection, followed by non-woven masks, cloth masks, and finally polyurethane types, the study showed.

  • Stock picking rockstar Cathie Wood is the anti-Warren Buffett

    Warren Buffett and Cathie Wood are polar opposites when it comes to investing. The former is a stock-picking legend with a history of skepticism of hyped-up technology concerns, while the latter seemingly can’t get enough of them. Each have cult followings—Buffett’s flock to see him at the company’s annual meeting, while Wood’s show their adoration on Twitter and TikTok.

  • Travel industry bets on vaccine passports to draw Brits to Med

    The race to roll out vaccination passports is spurring competition among travel companies and tourist destinations for the large number of Britons set to receive COVID-19 shots before the summer. Thanks to its swift vaccine deployment https://graphics.reuters.com/world-coronavirus-tracker-and-maps, Britain is the only major European country likely to inoculate a large share of working-age adults by summer. Airlines such as easyJet saw outbound bookings from Britain surge last week as the government raised the prospect of a return to quarantine-free summer travel, and the European Union agreed to develop vaccine passports under pressure from tourism-dependent southern countries.

  • Factbox: Health apps, vaccine certificates riding to rescue of air travel

    Governments and airlines in Europe are hoping that vaccine certificates and digital health apps can help make travel for the masses a reality again this summer after a year of COVID-19 restrictions. A digital health or travel app would aim to show passengers up-to-date requirements for their destination and display their COVID-19 test results and any vaccination certificate. "These solutions will therefore be vital to reduce this complexity and make the customer journey smoother," said Luis Gallego, chief executive of British Airways owner IAG.

  • Swedish court remands Vetlanda knife attack suspect in custody

    A Swedish court on Friday remanded the 22-year-old suspect in a knife attack in custody, a court spokesman said. The man is accused of seven counts of attempted murder over a rampage in the small town of Vetlanda in the south of Sweden on Wednesday in which seven people were wounded, none of them fatally.

  • WHO sees Ebola risk as "very high" for Guinea's neighbours

    World Health Organization officials said on Friday the risk of an Ebola outbreak spreading from Guinea to its neighbours was "very high" and that some neighbouring countries were not prepared for outbreaks or for future vaccination campaigns. WHO's Guinea representative, Georges Alfred Ki-Zerbo, told a virtual briefing that 18 cases had been identified and four of those people had died. So far, 1,604 people have been vaccinated against Ebola in the new outbreak in Guinea, the first resurgence of the virus there since a 2013-2016 outbreak - the world's worst - which spread to several other West African countries and killed thousand of people.

  • Oil near 14-month high as OPEC+ extends cuts

    Oil prices jumped more than $1 a barrel on Friday (March 5), hitting their highest levels in nearly 14 months.It comes after OPEC and its allies, a group known as OPEC+, agreed not to increase supply in April.The oil producers' group is waiting for a more substantial recovery in demand amid the health crisis.Brent crude was up around 2 percent in morning trade.Investors were surprised that Saudi Arabia agreed to maintain its voluntary cut of 1 million barrels per day, particularly as oil prices have rallied over the past two months.Oil importing countries such as India and Turkey saw their currencies slip after the news.India's oil minister told Reuters on Friday that the move would hurt consumers.Analysts are reviewing their price forecasts to reflect the continued supply restraint by OPEC+, as well as U.S. shale producers.They have been holding back spending in order to boost returns to investors.

  • This TikTok-famous £3 cleaning sponge will put a smile on your face

    They'll certainly give you something to smile about when it comes to the cleaning.

  • U.N. condemns up to 23 killings in Iran's border area with Pakistan

    At least a dozen people and possibly up to 23 have been killed in Iran's Sistan-Baluchistan province where Revolutionary Guards and security forces have used lethal force against fuel couriers from ethnic minorities and protesters, the United Nations said on Friday. Iran is investigating an incident in which at least two Iranians were shot dead this week at the border with Pakistan, and Islamabad has handed over the body of one of the victims, the Iranian foreign ministry said a week ago.

  • Senegal restricts internet as protests escalate

    Senegalese authorities have restricted internet access as protests over the detention of an opposition leader intensify, internet monitor NetBlocks said on Friday. Over the past two days, at least one person has been killed in clashes between riot police and supporters of Ousmane Sonko, who say his detention on Wednesday in the wake of a rape allegation is politically motivated. NetBlocks said social media and messaging apps including Facebook, WhatsApp, and Youtube had been restricted early on Friday ahead of a planned demonstration by civil society and opposition parties led by protest movement "Y En A Marre" (Enough is Enough).

  • Telepool Unveils New Strategy to Co-Produce, Co-Finance More Series, Reveals New Projects (EXCLUSIVE)

    German movie and television company Telepool – which is co-owned by Will Smith and Swiss investor Elysian Fields – and its sales arm Global Screen are embarking on a strategic realignment to board projects at an earlier stage as co-production and co-financing partners, in addition to handling world sales, and have revealed the first three […]

  • Earthstone Energy (ESTE) Moves 5.7% Higher: Will This Strength Last?

    Earthstone Energy (ESTE) was a big mover last session on higher-than-average trading volume. The latest trend in earnings estimate revisions might not help the stock continue moving higher in the near term.