E-trikes good for environment, but may further congest city streets
Mayor Rama test drives an e-trike of Beet Philippines. (CDN PHOTO/JOSE SANTINO BUNACHITA)
RAINS did not stop Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama from test driving an electric-powered tricycle (e-trike) around Plaza Sugbo last Wednesday.
A team from Beet visited Cebu City Hall yesterday and met with Rama to demonstrate how the e-trike works.
Although Rama enjoyed driving the e-trike, the mayor is not keen on having them on city streets.
“We don’t want more additions to the vehicles on our streets. We have to address first how we can create more space,” Rama said.
The small vehicle can run on speeds of up to 45 kilometers an hour. It is virtually silent when it runs and most importantly, there are no carbon emissions.
It runs on a lithium-ion battery technology and an electric motor. A maximum of seven passengers including the driver can be accommodated.
“For just four hours of charging, it can run for up to 50 kilometers,” Christian Tolentino, sales and marketing supervisor of Beet Philippines, Inc. said.
Beet is the first firm in the country to register an electric tricycle before the Land Transportation Office. Each vehicle costs $9,000.
In this age of climate change, electric-powered vehicles are becoming popular alternatives to fossil fuel-fed and carbon emitting cars.
If not bundled with renewable energy powered charging stations, electric-powered vehicles are not necessarily carbon emission-free because its power source could be fossil fuel-fed power plants like coal-powered plants.
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