tree dayEnvironment news · Development: 23 Oct 2026
Electric-bus training brings more women into transport jobs in Asia
A UNEP progress report describes 150 women trained as electric-bus drivers across East Asia, including a programme in Jakarta that connects fleet changes with new employment opportunities.
Jakarta, Indonesia / East Asia
An electric-bus training programme has reached 150 women across East Asia, the UN Environment Programme reported on 23 October. Its account highlights Jakarta, where Transjakarta’s academy began recruiting and training women in August 2025. The update describes an operating programme as the city works towards a larger electric fleet. [1]
Driver training goes beyond vehicle systems
The Jakarta course covers electric-vehicle systems, driving techniques, passenger support and gender-based violence over 23 intensive days. UNEP reported that the number of women drivers at Transjakarta had grown to 52, still about four per cent of drivers. The 150-person total covers East Asia, rather than Jakarta alone. [1]
The workforce element makes this more than a vehicle procurement story. A city needs people able to operate a changing fleet, and recruitment choices help determine who can access the resulting jobs. Passenger assistance and working conditions are part of that transition alongside the technology.
Fleet and workforce goals are still ahead
Jakarta aims to electrify its 5,000-bus fleet by 2030 and increase women’s representation among drivers to 30 per cent. [1] Those goals provide separate measures for following the programme: the vehicles in service and the people employed to run them.
The October account documents training and participation. Future updates on recruitment, retention and fleet deployment will show how those early steps develop. Counting course places alone would miss whether trainees secure durable work and whether the transport system gains the skills it needs.
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