E-trikes to boost income of tricycle drivers, DOE 7 says
By Fayette C. Ri�en
Engineer Eduardo Amante, chief of the energy resource development and utilization division of the Department of Energy (DOE) 7 explained that because e-trike uses battery which can just be recharged then tricycle drivers can be unburdened by the high cost of fuel prices which significantly impacts on their daily income.
Amante cited the case of Mandaluyong City which is the pilot area for the first e-trikes plying in the country where tricycle drivers today earn P445 for their daily average net income.
“Before they drove the e-trikes, tricycle drivers in Mandaluyong City spend an average of P250 per day on fuel alone. Today, they only spend P50 a day for charging their battery,” Amante said.
“So the tricycle drivers have a daily savings of P200 which is already a substantial amount” for other basic needs, Amante said.
Furthermore, the average daily trips for a two-kilometer route by the same e-trike drivers in Mandaluyong City is eight trips and their average daily income is P720/day, Amante disclosed.
The P720/day amount is deducted P225/day to pay for the loan amortization of the e-trike, according to Amante.
“The E-Trike Project was launched in Mandaluyong City as the pilot site in April last year with no less than Pres. Aquino in attendance,” the DOE-7 official said.
The 20 initial e-trikes in Mandaluyong City is financed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) as the latter wants to work with local government units to provide funding for the e-trike production for registered tricycle drivers under a lease-to-own financing mechanism.
DOE 7 Regional Director Engr. Antonio Labios on the other hand, bared that there are e-trikes already operating in other areas in the country such as in Puerto Princesa, Makati City, Surigao and in Taguig.
Though Labios said the e-trikes are more applicable in secondary cities where tricycles are more popular as the mode of transport, some urbanized cities can also benefit form the project.
“Before they drove the e-trikes, tricycle drivers in Mandaluyong City spend an average of P250 per day on fuel alone. Today, they only spend P50 a day for charging their battery,” Amante said.
“So the tricycle drivers have a daily savings of P200 which is already a substantial amount” for other basic needs, Amante said.
Furthermore, the average daily trips for a two-kilometer route by the same e-trike drivers in Mandaluyong City is eight trips and their average daily income is P720/day, Amante disclosed.
The P720/day amount is deducted P225/day to pay for the loan amortization of the e-trike, according to Amante.
“The E-Trike Project was launched in Mandaluyong City as the pilot site in April last year with no less than Pres. Aquino in attendance,” the DOE-7 official said.
The 20 initial e-trikes in Mandaluyong City is financed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) as the latter wants to work with local government units to provide funding for the e-trike production for registered tricycle drivers under a lease-to-own financing mechanism.
DOE 7 Regional Director Engr. Antonio Labios on the other hand, bared that there are e-trikes already operating in other areas in the country such as in Puerto Princesa, Makati City, Surigao and in Taguig.
Though Labios said the e-trikes are more applicable in secondary cities where tricycles are more popular as the mode of transport, some urbanized cities can also benefit form the project.
Labios cited Cebu which is a highly urbanized metropolis but there are certain interior sections in the cities of Lapulapu, Mandaue and Talisay where tricycles are being used as public transport.
Labios said that after the announcement of the winners of the DOE national contest on the ‘Best E-Trike Design,’ their agency will go wider in the implementation of the E-trike Project starting with a massive advocacy campaign to the local government units. (PIA-Cebu)
Labios said that after the announcement of the winners of the DOE national contest on the ‘Best E-Trike Design,’ their agency will go wider in the implementation of the E-trike Project starting with a massive advocacy campaign to the local government units. (PIA-Cebu)