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First electric taxi in Costa Rica By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The Public Transportation Council announced the delivery of the first license plate for an electric taxi in Costa Rica. The owner of the red cab is Leila Navas-Víquez, a taxi driver from Pérez Zeledón*, in the south zone of San Jose, who has been driving an electric taxi since June 14th. "This is a family investment, with the help of my children I convinced myself to drive a vehicle that does not pollute and also gives me more profit," said Leila Navas. "When I drove the electric taxi, I fell in love. It is safe, comfortable, and does not pollute." The first electric taxi is a Nissan, license plate TSJ 29, "it has a green plate as a hallmark of an electric vehicle," the Council in its statement. "In the short time she driven, Dona Leyla spent $140 on gas weekly, now she spends only $18 on electricity." According to the Council, the taxi makes daily trips of 120 km, and at the end of the day, the battery still has a 15 percent charge. The Council did not give information on the cost of purchasing the electric car, but according to the Nissan Corporation in the U.S., the Nissan Leaf electric motor, similar to the one of Mrs. Navas, is priced excluding taxes or cost of import, between $29,990 to $42,550. Readers can reach prices of electric cars at the Nissan Leaf site here.* Related to the program from the government to invest in electric vehicles, as A.M. Costa Rica reported on Nov. 2018, the Costa Rican post office announced the investment of $1.7 million to buy 348 electric motorcycles. The state-owned company Correos de Costa Rica announced the "Zero Emissions Project," which began this year. The first step was to purchase 348 electric motorcycles for national package delivery. The mail service plans to replace 70 gas motorcycles by the end of 2019 and complete the replacement of all 348 motorcycles in five years. The total investment will be $1,792,800, which is expected to be recovered through gas savings. The plan "Zero Emissions" is in response to the campaign of the first lady Claudia Dobles, who is encouraging the use of electric transport for zero emissions. "We have clear goals to decarbonize transport, where the public sector is fundamental for the transformation of vehicle fleets," said first lady Dobles when she announced the purchase of the motorcycles. "Correos de Costa Rica is an example of what institutions can and are ready to do to advance to zero-emission transport, with reductions in noise and CO2 pollution and also with significant economic savings." José Jiménez, President of the Costa Rican post office, agrees with the first lady. "We want the citizens to see a real example of all the benefits that come with the use of electric motorcycles, not only thinking about the future of our country but the savings it will generate." "The replacement of 70 motorcycles in the first year would guarantee a reduction of 81 tons of carbon dioxide per year and a decrease of 6,020 decibels per day by lowering the level of noise pollution," said Jimenez. "In five years, with the total replacement of the motorcycles, 623 tons of carbon dioxide will be reduced per day." With the investment in electric motorcycles, the courier company seeks to become the first state-owned environmental friendly logistics company, said Correos de Costa Rica in its statement. ----------------------- Do you think electric vehicles are a good investment for reducing emissions? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments to: news@amcostarica.com |
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