ABOUT one million electric vehicles, popularly known as Easy Bikes, are running in the streets for transporting 2.5 crore passengers in both townships and rural areas across the country. Without a government policy and plan, people of low-income groups over the last few years adopted the cheap, fuel-efficient, environment-friendly but dangerous mode of transport for their everyday communication. The growth of Easy Bike market is expanding rapidly but there is no provision of license which deprives the government exchequer severely. Thousands of unemployed or underemployed youths amid the demographic dividends become employed by the introduction of cheap transport which consumes only 450MW electricity a day. Innovation is highly recommended to make the bike more sustainable and safe with government regularization.
The New Nation, quoting a study, reported that private entrepreneurs are importing and assembling the vehicles in the country. Lack of state-level policy and fixed charge stations, alongwith vested groups are involved in illegal electricity trading that are resulting in losses of huge revenue for the government each year. The volume of the Easy Bike market is about Tk 17,500 crore which includes Tk 5,000 crore battery requirement every year. Combustion of fossil fuel in the transportation sector results in an increased emission of greenhouse gases but the locally assembled Easy Bikes have shown potentials of immense opportunity in conserving the environment, use of green energy, plus also generating huge employment, developing local automobile industry and creating a revolution in the mass transportation system. Meanwhile, the transport gives enormous financial, social and environmental opportunities in the aspect of over populous Bangladesh.
Despite huge potentiality, Bangladesh Road Transport Authority is unable to register Easy Bike as motor vehicles, provide license, route permits and fitness certificate for some procedural and mechanical shortcomings. On a stopgap arrangement, Easy Bikes are now plying on roads with parking numbers given by City Corporations and Union Parishads. Regularizing the mode of transport by removing mechanical and legal shortcomings and making them efficient mass transportation systems should be a priority for the government.
