These buses, assembled by the Belayneh Kindie Group, boast a range of up to 370 kilometers on a single charge.
Dubbed “100% Electric, Zero CO₂”, the newly commissioned electric buses have been designated to serve the Bole – Estifanos – 4 Kilo – 6 Kilo – Shiro Meda route.
Furthermore, it has been highlighted that these buses offer services to the public at the same fare rate as the existing city buses.
The introduction of modern electric vehicles (EVs) for public transportation came after the government announced its plan to ban the importation of gasoline or diesel vehicles as part of its efforts to fast-track the transition to electric mobility in the face of a global fuel price hike.
The East African country spent 6 billion U.S. dollars on the import of fuel in 2023, over half of which went to fueling vehicles, according to the Ethiopian Ministry of Transport and Logistics. Additionally, pollution levels in city centers due to these vehicles are reportedly off the charts.
According to incomplete statistics, there are roughly 1.2 million vehicles in Ethiopia, with a big chunk of them being well over 20 years old. Most of the cars on the road are secondhand imports, and black smoke is often seen rising from the rear of these cars.
MG/abj/APA