Auckland councillor calls out ‘anti-EV propaganda’ after fatal crash

North Shore councillor Richard Hills has criticised the spread of misinformation about a fatal collision involving an electric bus last week, calling out what he described as “bizarre anti-EV propaganda” on social media.

A bus driver died after an Auckland Transport bus was engulfed in flames following a collision with a car on Tāmaki Drive last Wednesday. The incident has prompted online speculation about electric vehicle safety.

Hills took to social media to reassure the public that catching buses remained perfectly safe, despite the tragic incident.

“Just like all types of vehicles, there will be times we sadly have electric vehicle (EV) bus collisions and / or fires, and we know batteries can be harder to put out,” Hills said. “That’s why there are fire safety systems and technology built in and around the batteries.”

Investigation finds car engine caused fire

A Fire and Emergency spokesperson confirmed the fire started in the car’s engine, not the bus. Bus operator Kinetic said its investigation found the batteries in the bus were undamaged and were not a factor in the blaze.

Police confirmed their investigation into the crash was ongoing.

Hills said it was important people remained confident about using public transport, citing data from the UK, America and Australia showing electric vehicles were far less likely to catch fire than petrol vehicles, although both scenarios were very unlikely.

He pointed to recent examples of fires involving conventional vehicles to counter claims that electric buses posed unique risks.

“In August, we had an old diesel bus catch fire on the Shore. Two years ago, another diesel caught fire on Fanshawe St,” Hills said.

“Ten days ago, 28 cars caught fire at Whāngarei Hospital and were completely ruined by a hot exhaust starting a fire. None of those horrible incidents mean we should ban diesel vehicles.”

Electric bus programme aims to cut emissions

Hills defended Auckland’s electric bus rollout, saying the programme was designed to deliver multiple benefits for the city.

“There is no conspiracy here. The reason we are rolling out EV buses is to reduce emissions, reduce operating costs, reduce noise pollution and reduce air pollution in Auckland – especially around the city centre, our town centres, and neighbourhoods,” he said.

The councillor expressed concern about the impact of misinformation, particularly when people had been killed or harmed in incidents.

“Check reliable sources or even wait a day or two, misinformation is rife when events are unfolding,” Hills said.

“People have different opinions and that’s OK, but I do worry that sometimes people can be so clouded by those views they forget there are real people dealing with things like this on the other end.”