A local taxi service is not only empowering women and making safer transport options available but they are also contributing towards saving the planet.
The Green Cab, owned by four women, is set to roll out 230 electric vehicles within the next five years.
They will own and operate 60 of them and the rest will be operated by female franchises.
Co-founder and managing director of The Green Cab, Amiene van der Merwe, says their driving forces are three-fold - reduce their carbon footprint, empowering women financially as it reduces the likelihood of abuse, and “lastly, creating dignified livelihood opportunities as women make up less than 2% of all e-hailing drivers in South Africa.”
The Green Cab will charge R15.50 per km with a minimum base fare set at R75.
“It is a premier service (but) not because electricity is expensive. It costs 70% less to operate an electric vehicle as opposed to an Internal Combustion Engines(ICE) vehicle.
“Strictly speaking we should be asking less because our operation costs are lower. However, we do not have price parity between ICE and electric vehicle’s yet,” she explains.
The estimated range on a Volvo EX-30 is up to 480 km before it needs charging but Van Der Merwe says this won’t be an issue.
“We just need to top up, which is from a DC fast charger. We’ll have dedicated DC fast charges for our use only where our drivers will top up once a day.
“Corporates will be our target market,” she adds.
Professor David Walwyn of the UP Graduate School of Technology Management at the University of Pretoria says this is a positive step for the transport industry.
“Decarbonisation of this sector is critical for its sustainability over the long term.
“It will definitely be a challenge since liquid fuel for high daily mileages is still the cheapest and most practical option,” he says.
Mayoral committee member for energy, Councillor Beverley van Reene, says the City is moving towards a future transport system based on zero-emissions and primarily electrically powered vehicles.
“Electric mobility, or eMobility, uses electrically-powered modes of transport such as electric vehicles (EVs), as a first step in the technology change towards this future transport system. Adoption of EV technology and eMobility are also key focus areas in the City's climate change response,” she adds.
keagan.mitchell@inl.co.za