Days after President William Ruto revealed plans to roll out an electric vehicle public transport system, a section of boda boda riders rushed to embrace the changes.
Riders, especially in Nairobi, on Tuesday, June 6, disclosed that electric bikes were cost-saving compared to fuel-powered ones.
In a media interview, one delivery rider revealed that she spends only Ksh180 charging her electric bike daily to cover between 80 and 100 kilometres.
"Most people that I work with use petrol boda boda, and I can tell you for sure that most of them want my bike because the economic difference is very wide," the rider narrated.
The rider claimed that using an electric bike was economical as she saved nearly Ksh420 she used to spend on fuel-powered boda bodas.
"That Ksh180 takes me throughout the day in deliveries. Other boda boda riders spend nearly Ksh600 a day. That's one huge gap," she argued.
The Nairobi-based rider implored President Ruto to expedite reforms in the boda boda sector key to empowering the operators and offering alternatives to the high fuel cost.
Ruto Promise
During Madaraka Day Celebrations in Embu on Thursday, June 1, Ruto announced that the electric vehicle public transport system would be launched in September 2023.
In the planned reforms, he highlighted that operators would also receive bikes at affordable rates and save them from predatory lenders.
"Our boda boda industry is about to experience inclusive transformation through the introduction of more efficient, affordable, and clean vehicles. With this intervention, owning and operating a boda boda will become affordable, secure, and profitable," Ruto stated.
"By September 2023, we will have a mechanism where you can a have boda boda that does not need petrol but runs on electricity, one that is financed not by a predatory system, but one that respects the interest of those who purchase boda bodas," Ruto added.
His government also announced plans to incentivise electric car and bike manufacturers to help them upscale their operations.
