The cabinet meeting on Tuesday approved the plan to purchase a new fleet of 3,183 buses fuelled by compressed natural gas (CNG) for Bangkok, at a cost of 13.16 billion baht, Deputy Transport Minister Plin Suwanatat said.
The plan was proposed by the Ministry of Transport.
Transport Minister Chatchart Sittipunt said earlier that it would be more cost-effective to purchase than to lease.
He said the city bus operator, the BMTA, does not have enough serviceable buses to provide a proper service. With 40% of the fleet out of service, only about 2,500 buses were currently in use.
The State Enterprise Policy Office, an agency of the Finance Ministry which oversees state enterprises, had approved the purchase of these buses last year, he said.