The Philippines should soon be free of gasoline-powered tricycles if the dream of Ang Kasangga Rep. Teodorico Haresco is to come true. According to the co-inventor of the electric tricycles, the dream vehicle presently used in Quezon City and Bacolod City and San Carlos City in Negros Occidental is inexpensive and environmentally friendly.
Manufactured by Brian Stanley Jackson of the Makati City-based Technostrat Corp. the electric tricycles use heat from the solar panels to generate electricity. The tricycle, which is zero % carbon emission-free and does not contribute to noise pollution, can snugly seat six persons. Solar panels fitted on roofs are used to collect the heat and power the batteries, generating electricity to speed up the engines. The tricycle runs for eight hours on 10% solar power and 90% electricity.
One of the advantages of the solar-powered tricycle is that it costs only P48 a day to operate compared to P200 a day for gasoline-powered tricycles. This would increase the tricycle driver’s income from the present P4,700 per month to P12,500, making the vehicle economically feasible.
