In the past few weeks, Davao City has been having a green revolution! I’ve never been much of an environmentalist. I believe that we should take care of the environment, but I am not a rabid “go green” person by any means. I do believe, though, that when there is an opportunity that comes along to take better care of our environment, then we should certainly do so if it is a feasible thing to do. Of course, you always have to weigh the pluses and minuses of every move. Sometimes, a move that seems pro-environment can actually be anti-environment.
So, what is it that Davao City has done that I am talking about? Well, we now have fleet of green tricycles plying the roadways of Davao City! These are electric tricycles that I am talking about. These electric vehicles have been put on the streets of Davao by DC Electric Vehicle Corporation. They are a little larger than the average tricycle that we see around here. I suppose that they can comfortably seat about 10 people or so. That means in the Philippines they can squeeze 12 or 14 people in one!
Here in Davao, tricycles are banned from the main streets and highways around town, they are restricted to residential areas only. However, these electric tricycles, in my understanding, are allowed to operate on all of the City Streets, as kind of a promotion of the electric vehicle technology.
As a point of pride for expats, I understand that a local foreigner is somehow involved in the ownership of this company too. Philippine law does not allow for business ownership by a foreigner, but I suppose this guy has a Philippine wife, or some other family member who is Filipino, although I do not yet know the exact details. What I do know is that there is a foreigner who is involved in the ownership in some way, though.
I have seen these electric tricycles riding around my neighborhood in the past couple weeks, and also on streets around town. I do not know for sure yet how many such electric tricycles are on the streets now, but there are more than one. I know that because I have seen them in different parts of town, within the same time frame.
Well, as i said, I am not an rabid environmentalist, but it does make me proud that Davao is moving toward a “clean and green” vehicle on City Streets, and also it makes me feel quite proud that the electric tricycles have been put there by a foreigner in Davao. As I find out more about these electric tricycles, I’ll do some updated articles here on LiP.
hi bob,
It's about time!. not only the electric tricycle help reduce pollution, it also reduced oil consumption.
And NOISE!
Amazes me that so many people are buying into this electric vehicle craze…as if electricity is produced on its own. Davao and several dozen other areas may be able to produce hydro electricity but the vast amount of it is produced using some sort of fuel. At current world output and consumption rates we would have to build hundreds more electric power plants to keep up to the demand of a few million electric vehicles plugged into the grid. Until we lean more towards nuclear power plants the fossil fuels used to feed these power plants would be astronimical. The reading I've done on it tends to lean towards low sulfer diesel fuels as the best answer until we come up with something better than electricity.
Hi dans – That's right, many different benefits from a vehicle like this one.
Hi Mark C – Another plus!
you will find some amazing electric bikes on the web. They,re being made by the thousands in china with some very nice ones being built in europe and the US. Just hope Davao light can generate enough electicity to recharge all those batterys. I,ve been researching the idea myself and plan to build one someday. Electric vehicles aren,t as green as people make out because of their power needs ands the problem of disposing of the worn out batteries,and their range is limited, but they seem to me to be a better option if only for the lack of noise and smell. you can actualy build one yourself for not much more than pocket change and i,m sure it wont take long for inventive filipinos to start a back yard industry around the idea.
Hi brian – Yeah, that is why I lead off the article by saying that sometimes things that seem pro-environment can actually end up being anti-environment, for issues just like what you describe. I think that these vehicles are a net plus, though.
Hi Daryl Lister – You guys are on your toes today! I think that most people instantly think – "Electric=green and good" but as you and Brian point out, the electricity must be generated somehow, and that is not always green. I was hoping to see some critical thinking on this! I think it's a net plus, just not the panacea that many think it is.
Morning Bob,
I always consider the pros and cons too. Electric vehicles are often on a knife edge is this regard. However, in such a highly polluted city (and suburbs) it will be a net plus. Being a part-time motorcyclist myself, I must admit I have never seen such pollution before from small two-stroke engines as I did in Davao. Add to that the resident's manic desire to light fires in their yards to burn inappropriate materials = pollution haze big time.
Hi AussieLee – In Davao, there are few yard fires these days. They were outlawed a couple years ago, and you barely see them now.
Personally, I would not call Davao a "highly polluted city" – it is much cleaner than most Philippine Cities, IMHO. Yes, there is room for improvement, but it is not that bad.
well they need to convert the diesel power plants to burn clean coconut oil .. that would be cool an Green too …Phil n Jess
Well I would think that they need to convert the diesel power plants to burn clean coconut oil .. that would be cool an Green too …Phil n Jess
Hi Phil – And smell good too! 😆
well the environmental thing is affecting me here too bob, in Florida the governor signed into legislation last year that starting May 1, fuel stations can only sell E10 fuel and progress toward E85 by 2011. This affects me because the vehicles i drive. you see i have a 1970 HEMI `Cuda and a number of other sports cars that just will not, cannot run on this fuel so that's it I'm outta here hehe see ya in two weeks ! 😉
bring the Cuda.!!
Hi Tommy – Great reason to leave! You been looking for a reason, right? 😉
Hi Phil – I'll bring it! Oh, wait… what is cuda?
what is cuda?
..BBOOOOOOBBBBB…your not THAT big of a geek are you ??!!!!!LOL
ITS A FISH FOR CRYING OUT LOUD !!!!!!
Hi brian – Oh, baracuda? I thought he was trying to use a bisaya or tagalog word! 😆 😯
Hi Bob,
From what I've been reading, all these electric vehicles will be recharging overnight when power consumption on the grid is at its lowest. And since not everyone will want an electric vehicle the likelihood of overwhelming the power grid is small.
I guess from an environmental point of view if the electricity is being produced by burning coal instead by nuclear or hydro-electric power plants then one has to wonder about the net benefits environmentally.
which one Phil ? the `70 or the `08 srt ?
If the Philippines continues in its direction of exploring alternative energies, this shouldn't be a problem 🙂
It's already second in the world on Geothermal Power production (second to the U.S.), and according to nationmaster, is first in the percentage of its power production coming from solar/geo/wind at 26.9% of total as of 2001 (hopefully it has grown since).
http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/ene_ele_pro_by_…
Bob,
Like you, I live on a main road. For me, the house is closer to the road and windows up front. I hope they will use the new ones here, at time I cannot hear the TV as they buzzz by.
Hi Randall – Thankfully, a lot of our power production in Mindanao is from hydro sources, so that is very clean.
Hi Jong – Thanks for sharing that.
Hi Bruce – Thankfully, we sit back from the street, and the areas of the house where I spend most of my time are further toward the back of the house, so I don't get much noise from tricycles.
My first thought was what effect this would have on the electric grid. Of course my second was wow those would be quiet and not stink! lol
If they are charging them at night its probably a great idea. But I seriously doubt they could run all day on one charge! Do they have some battery exchange or something to keep them going?
Also I wonder what one of these would cost? It would be just about right for me and my family.
Hi Bob – The only thing "green" about me are the green flip-flops I use for walking to town. Being fossil-like in nature, I'd suppose the my morning coffee and pandesal could be considered fossil fuel and excess consumption is always worrysome. I won't venture into the "pollution" issues! 😆
Hi John H – These should not take that much power that they would affect the electric grid. It's not that many units as of now, so minimal effect.
Hi Paul – Yeah, let's steer clear of the pollution discussion! Talk about bringing LiP to a whole new level! 😆
bob, you've once again warmed my tree-hugging heart.
and as a bonus, the lack of noise factor. one of my favorite things back then was riding a quiet "trisikad" in my neighborhood and just hearing pebbles crunching under the rubber tires… and then the motors showed up and ruined things.
Some cities have restrictions, going downtown in a normal car, meaning that you have to pay toll. Here in the town where I live, if you drive an electric vehicle, there are designated parkingspaces with an electric plug-in function so you can recharge for free, and the parking is free of charge too, where you have to pay 3 to 5$ an hr. if you park any other vehicle.
Even so, electric vehicles are not very popular, they are still considered to expensive and to unreliable and the travel distance is to short between recharges.
Hey macky – Oh my! 😯 crushing those nice little pebbles is certainly not an environmentally friendly thing! Pebbles have feelings too, after all! Tsk tsk tsk!
Can you imagine, a conservative warming your heart on an environmental issue! 😆 I love it! Seriously, though, I welcome the electric tricycles in Davao! I think it's a great thing.
Hey, Macky, I was cruising your Facebook last night! In all of your pictures, your arm looks dirty! What happened? 😀
Hi Preben – I think that is kind of cool to have free recharging stations at the free parking places! I bet that in 10 years you have to pay for the recharge, though!
hey, it's all about finding common ground 🙂
regarding my arm, can't seem to rub it off with mexican water 🙂 it's actually a map with mindanao on it…. y'know, just in case i get lost at sea.
Hi macky – Ha ha… hey, you didn't put my caricature on that map, did you? Even though you are the artist, I might have to charge a royalty!!
Seriously, though… did you design the tat?
I wonder on the range of these with all that added weight, The more load you put on these 12V DC motors the more electricity they suck. And as far as throttle goes it uses Pulse width modulation similar to what I use for my company to run our pumps. You will generate a lot of heat at partial duty cycle like say 10mph with 8 people on board. Better have some serious heat sinks on that motor controller our it's not going to last long in that environment.
I'm personally think 4 stock with electronic fuel injection would be a better way to go. Especially if you can squeeze 100mpg out of a trike that way. Heat kills batteries very quickly as well, the RP is just not the best place for electric vehicles. You can easily get 4 to 5 years out of a normal battery in the states especially in places like Washington state. Go down to Florida and you get around 2 years from the same battery.
It's more practical and you still got to produce electricity the old fashion way to charge these vehicles. Plus disposal of the old batteries ect is another environmental mess. I'm all about being greener but face it were going to be stuck with fossil fuels for some time. Might as well make them efficient.
With how they pack trikes in the Philippines those things are not going to run to long and repairs are expensive and parts are not local for most parts. Being a ASE certified Mechanic among other things I can tell you it's just not practical.
fuel injected 4 stroke is the way to go, highly fuel efficient and low maintenance. Not to mention more power per cc. A 200cc to 250cc trike would be efficient and replacing 1 with a fuel injected 4 stroke would be like removing 5 carbed 2 stoke trikes from the road.
yeah, i thought about adding mindanao bob on a raft. but, times are tough and i decided to avoid the royalties 🙂
no, i didn't design it. too much pressure on myself. i just made sure to pick good artists.
one point though, it's easier for me to do it because i'm self employed with no boss or a 9 to 5'er. i wouldn't recommend it (exposed tats) to anyone with an office job & just starting a career.
Something a bit more practical I would love to see made in the PH is a hydrolic powered trike. Cut fuel in half just by not having a transmission and cut pollution by 3/4 or more since the motor only runs when the tank pressure is low.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/Green-Transportati…
http://www.motherearthnews.com/Green-Transportati…
Would be even better if you add a steam turbine engine that runs on alcohol.
Hi Bilal – Interesting information there. Thanks for sharing that.
Hi macky – I would have given you a real good price on those royalties! 😉
Well, I'll be looking forward to checking out your tat when you next in Davao!
Hi John – Wow, you're the LiP Technology man! Interesting ideas.
That application is really for larger vehicles, You do have to have a sizable hydraulic tank. There another reason that is not a use or practical solution. This has been developed much further by Eaton, you might now them from the Supercharges they produces as well. But not practical for a trike. The systems are also very heavy. And I don't know about you but riding a trike with a 2000psi tank of hydraulic fluid would not be a option for me.
70 of course
Hey Bob they have diesel power plants too by cagayan de oro
Hi Bob.
you are most likely right, but then 10 years are better than no years.
Have a nice weekend.
hi bob,
Train the carabao to run 80kp/h that will solve carbon pollution and oil consumption, the manure can be recycled to home cooking gas too!.
they should start modifying the genetic of all carabao to run faster.. lol!
Hi Bilal – Yeah, all that hydraulic fluid would weigh a lot!
Hi Phil – Yeah, there is one in Davao too, but what I was saying is that a lot, even most power in Mindanao is hydro. Not all, though.
Hi Preben – no doubt about that!
Hi dans – those carabao are gonna give off a lot of methane gas though!
Maayong Buntag Bob
One of the biggest issues with the electric bikes and cars is accidents. The batteries have acid that even in a gel form can spill. The biggest issue is the voltage potential of the batteries. You short out a battery and you can have thousands of amps causing all kinds of problems. Do not want to rain on the green parade but they still need to work out some bugs.
Hi Bob,
These electric tricycles sound like a great thing. You always have to deduct the unenvironmental cost of producing the electricity to charge these things from the unenvironmental cost of running a traditionally fuelled 'cycle, but I am sure in this case it will be a very positive move, since the vast majority of the trycicles in use have only a modest shaving of piston ring left in their engines, producing much much more co2 than they were originally designed to. Also, eventually, the annoying racket they make will be lessened too. So I'm all for them. Actually, I have discovered that the Philippines are actually more "green" than I had initially thought. This is not for the green cause though, of which most people are either unaware or don't give a hoot; but for economical reasons. Last time we were there, I noticed families saving food cans in separate bins, newspapers, food waste etc. There are some economic reasons for this, and some logical disposal reasons too. All the food waste goes into the animals…dogs pigs etc., either yours or your neighbours, and various guys come around wanting to buy the cans and newspapers at so much per kilo! Pretty good really. Perhaps the world's environmentalists could take note and learn a little. On a less pleasing note about recycling of a form, I had a recent conversation with my Wife's family's farm manager. Last visit, he had just acquired a lovely little puppy dog which they called "Erap". http://www.flickr.com/photos/31609521@N05/3451882…
Remembering this, I enquired at the end of the call as to Erap's wellbeing. "Masarap" (delicious), came the reply, and my further investigations revealed that, sadly, he wasn't joking. Still, food waste was recycled, wasn’t it?
Actually, the word he used to describe Erap was "Lami", but I had temporarily forgotten the Bisay word.
Hi Jim – Yep, that recycling project went full circle, didn't it? Ha ha…. Erap was tasty too! Oh my… 😯
Kamusta ka Bob,
Its great to see these things there in the Philippines, and here in the USA you'll see a lot of local government vehicles, and even Federal governments have had these types of vehicles be used. For years the Federal government has had vehicles that use "propane to power there vehicles, usually Ford Rangers.
But I have never seen a big push for the American car buyer to purchase such vehicles..so not sure exactly what direction or view the US government has with getting the American public to purchase this type of vehicle.
Just goes back to the almighty dollar, and the big car manufacturers, oil industries not wanting this an alternative fueled vehicles out there in the public eye….is just my opinion.
Take care now,
Danny
Sir BoB,I think the green initiative is a step in the right direction. Whether it works in the long term or not, it is much better than doing nothing. Yet again, its Davao City residents that are getting off their collective asses and doing SOMETHING. It would be nice if the Illiganos would make and effort and reduce the land and air pollution that is the trademark of this city.
Caring for the environment reminds me of a funny story, when I took my fiance to Samal Island and we visited Paradise Beach (I think is the name). She stood at the waters edge just transfixed and in silence. I asked her whats the matter luv, she said why are there no plastic bags, the sand is white, the sea is green and the sky blue? I was dumbstruck, I said because its clean…….
Hi Danny – Yeah, if it helps the environment without costing us other problems, then I am for it!
Kamusta ka Bob and Boss,
When I sent pictures of the beaches here in Florida and the parks we have here in Florida and also Maryland, and North Carolina, Rose was so surprised at the cleanliness of the beaches. That there was no litter to be found, and Rose does not come from a big populated area, Maasin City is very small compared to Cebu, Davao, and even Manila of course.
But it does seem that the Maasin City government is "clamping" down on people littering and putting more trash cans, and even hiring more people for the city to keep the public places cleaner. Promoting a message to the citizens of Maasin City to have "More Pride in your Community", and to help keep it clean for our future generations. The mayor of Maasin seems to be doing a great job of this and focusing on these types of efforts for the community there, and is much loved by the people in Maasin. I guess when Rose was a child, it was even worst of a problem.
Salamat,
Danny
Hi Bob,
Certainly a move in the right direction,anything that cuts pollution allied with cheaper running costs is win/win situation in my book.
The world is set for big changes in this current industrial revolution,or as some politicians have named it "The Digital Revolution".The motor manufactures now have to pull their fingers out of old technology as the current bail outs have green conditions attached.
I recently watched video of the new GM Chevy Volt to be launched late 2010,impressive.It uses Lithium-ion batteries with 10year lifespan,40 miles on full charge, backed up by small gasolene generator to charge batteries and extend range to 400 miles.
Initial cost $40000 until production is revved up.
The battle is now on Electric v Hydrogen power.
regards Chas.
lol 300 M cows in India have gas and are affecting the ozone so the news says !
Hang in there Bob we will get you edgemacated yet ..?
Hi Danny – I hope that the Mayor is very successful in his clean-up drive.
Hi chas – It will be interesting to see if GM gets some traction with that Volt. They need something to catch on!
Hi Tommy – 😆
Hi Phil – 😯
Brian:
Switching to electricity is just part of the solution. Electricity can be generated using renewable methods, including solar and wind power, among others. The important thing is that people are at least becoming energy conscious. A tropical country like the Philippines is a prime candidate for solar power, especially in rural areas that may be underserved by the electrical grid. Severla studies have validated that even using fossil fuels for electrical generation, electric vehicles are less polluting.
Hi!
Things here are great! In our place, Naga, we fly simply by our powered coconut oil at night. Very simple! Want to try? Visit us!