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I have to imagine that all these new EV rickshaws are significantly cleaning up the air in countries like India, Vietnam and Thailand. Anyone on the ground flo

I have to imagine that all these new EV rickshaws are significantly cleaning up the air in countries like India, Vietnam and Thailand. Anyone on the ground floor confirm this? I recall the particulates in the air of decades past being super hard on the lungs.

manasdaruka 3y ago
While ev 3-wheelers have become quite common in India, I am not sure if they have led to any visible improvement in air quality. The earlier 3-wheelers were already CNG based and not as inefficient as petrol/gasoline powered ones. We are a developing country so I believe the growth in private cars is also offsetting any gains from ev 3-wheelers. To add to this, the particulates in the air are not entirely from this pollution, it is a sum of our terrain, geography, agricultural activities and pollution.
pritambarhate 3y ago
Yes like the sibling said, EVs are a fraction of the total number of vehicles on the Road. But adoption is growing every year. Hopefully in 10 years or so EVs will take over.
shrikant 3y ago
There's too many "legacy" vehicles still on the road for these to make a noticeable impact. I was in Bangalore recently and in various popular and upcoming parts of the city, it's basically unbreathable toxic sludge at rush hour, and only mildly OK otherwise.
- lazide 3y ago
  Tons of other air pollution sources too, from trash fires to cooking. It would be nice to cut down on any one source, and cars are definitely a big problem, but not the only one.
alephnerd 3y ago
> are significantly cleaning up the air Nope. They're a menace. The batteries are dumped after they die out, and random alleyway factories will make batteries without caring about externalities or chemical disposal [0]. > Vietnam and Thailand Vietnam doesn't use 3 wheelers. Everyone buys a 2 wheeler. Thailand has transitioned to cars. You don't see "Tuktuks" outside of tourist centers anymore. A Toyota Hilux is the vehicle of choice in Thailand [0] - https://m.economictimes.com/industry/renewables/govt-to-take-serious-note-of-any-report-about-dumping-of-lithium-ion-battery-waste-nitin-gadkari/articleshow/105781076.cms https://m.economictimes.com/industry/renewables/govt-to-take...
- actionfromafar 3y ago
  So, cleaning up the air but poisoning the waters?
  - alephnerd 3y ago
    Not even cleaning the air. While India is working on massive green energy projects, it's also doubling down on expanding Coal Capacity [0] as a short term solution to energy independence. China's doing the same [0] - https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/india-increase-coal-fired-capacity-2024-by-most-least-6-years-2024-02-01/ https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/india-increase-coal-...
    - Tagbert 3y ago
      With EVs, even if they are powered by 100% coal electricity, they still produce less CO2 and pollution than an ICEV. Considering how dirty most gas-powered rickshaws have been, I have to assume that the electric versions are much much cleaner in this regard.
      - alephnerd 3y ago
        The e-rickshaws use lead acid batteries and "disposal infrastructure" is just chucking it to the side if it's dead. A CNG auto-rickshaw is also similarly light on fumes. In all honesty, all three-wheelers need to be banned in India, but it will never happen because that's political suicide.
rldjbpin 3y ago
at least in the Indian capital, over time the e-rickshaws have seemingly replaced most of the manually operated ones. neither was directly contributing to the problem, but i suppose the electric ones can be more efficient for space on the road.

manasdaruka 3y ago

While ev 3-wheelers have become quite common in India, I am not sure if they have led to any visible improvement in air quality. The earlier 3-wheelers were already CNG based and not as inefficient as petrol/gasoline powered ones. We are a developing country so I believe the growth in private cars is also offsetting any gains from ev 3-wheelers. To add to this, the particulates in the air are not entirely from this pollution, it is a sum of our terrain, geography, agricultural activities and pollution.

pritambarhate 3y ago

Yes like the sibling said, EVs are a fraction of the total number of vehicles on the Road. But adoption is growing every year. Hopefully in 10 years or so EVs will take over.

shrikant 3y ago

There's too many "legacy" vehicles still on the road for these to make a noticeable impact. I was in Bangalore recently and in various popular and upcoming parts of the city, it's basically unbreathable toxic sludge at rush hour, and only mildly OK otherwise.

lazide 3y ago
Tons of other air pollution sources too, from trash fires to cooking. It would be nice to cut down on any one source, and cars are definitely a big problem, but not the only one.

alephnerd 3y ago

> are significantly cleaning up the air Nope. They're a menace. The batteries are dumped after they die out, and random alleyway factories will make batteries without caring about externalities or chemical disposal [0]. > Vietnam and Thailand Vietnam doesn't use 3 wheelers. Everyone buys a 2 wheeler. Thailand has transitioned to cars. You don't see "Tuktuks" outside of tourist centers anymore. A Toyota Hilux is the vehicle of choice in Thailand [0] - https://m.economictimes.com/industry/renewables/govt-to-take-serious-note-of-any-report-about-dumping-of-lithium-ion-battery-waste-nitin-gadkari/articleshow/105781076.cms https://m.economictimes.com/industry/renewables/govt-to-take...

actionfromafar 3y ago
So, cleaning up the air but poisoning the waters?
- alephnerd 3y ago
  Not even cleaning the air. While India is working on massive green energy projects, it's also doubling down on expanding Coal Capacity [0] as a short term solution to energy independence. China's doing the same [0] - https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/india-increase-coal-fired-capacity-2024-by-most-least-6-years-2024-02-01/ https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/india-increase-coal-...
  - Tagbert 3y ago
    With EVs, even if they are powered by 100% coal electricity, they still produce less CO2 and pollution than an ICEV. Considering how dirty most gas-powered rickshaws have been, I have to assume that the electric versions are much much cleaner in this regard.
    - alephnerd 3y ago
      The e-rickshaws use lead acid batteries and "disposal infrastructure" is just chucking it to the side if it's dead. A CNG auto-rickshaw is also similarly light on fumes. In all honesty, all three-wheelers need to be banned in India, but it will never happen because that's political suicide.

rldjbpin 3y ago

at least in the Indian capital, over time the e-rickshaws have seemingly replaced most of the manually operated ones. neither was directly contributing to the problem, but i suppose the electric ones can be more efficient for space on the road.