Rwanda Is Going Electric: Government To Eliminate Gas Motorcycles

Just like many other countries in Africa where the motorcycle taxi markets are flourishing, Rwandans also rely on motorcycle taxis as a mode of transport, it is estimated that 20 to 30 thousand taxis operate in Kigali.

However, in a new move, the Rwandan Government is planning to eliminate motorcycles in the taxi industry as it fronts the use of electric-motorcycle taxis.

The Paul-Kagame led government is planning to issue national policy-guidelines to eliminate gas motorcycles.

The Director-General for the Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority Patrick Nyirishema said that “the policy is prepared and it’s yet to be passed…and is going through the approval process.

The elimination of gas motorcycle is part of a wider plan to move Rwanda’s entire mobility space to electric, it will start with public transit operators, such as moto-taxis, and move to buses and automobiles.

Nyirishema said, ““Once the policy is out, we’ll no longer permit any motorcycle that is not electric to be added to a fleet, we will find a way to replace the ones you have now. We urge taxi-moto operators to help us when the phase-out process comes,”

He said that the country’s regulators will need to create an appropriate transition period and program for taxi operators to move to e-motos.

In late 2018, Germany-based electric vehicle manufacturing company, Ampersand began trialing electric motorcycle taxis (e-motos) with tests on four different e-moto models, specifically for motorcycle taxi drivers.

E-motos are calculated to generate a 75 percent net reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to petrol bikes. In a year, the emotos are projected to generate fuel savings of USD 900 per bike.

The Ampersand’s machine is able to cover a distance of up to 65 km per charge cycle and can be thought ideal for covering distances that are equivalent to the Boda-Boda trip in a faster and environmental-friendly way.

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