Here comes Kenya's first locally assembled electric bus
Roam Move shuttle bus, an electric vehicle fully designed and assembled in Kenya.
What you need to know:
- The zero-emissions shuttle bus and is equipped with a 170 kWh battery pack and can travel 200 kilometres on a single charge. It also has a fast plug-in battery charging that ensures it is fully charged in less than two hours.
- Among other attributes, the electric bus has a whisper-quiet ride that reduces noise pollution in densely populated areas.
Kenyans can now enjoy rides in the country’s first locally designed and assembled electric bus.
Technology company Roam announced the launch of the ‘Made in Kenya’, fully electric, Roam Move shuttle bus mid last month. The zero-emissions shuttle bus and is equipped with a 170 kWh battery pack and can travel 200 kilometres on a single charge. It also has a fast plug-in battery charging that ensures it is fully charged in less than two hours.
Among other attributes, the electric bus has a whisper-quiet ride that reduces noise pollution in densely populated areas.
According to Dennis Wakaba, Roam’s country sales executive, the vehicle is poised to revolutionise public transportation by reducing reliance on imported fossil fuels, promoting domestic renewable energy utilisation, and most importantly, providing a zero-emission solution that addresses air quality challenges.
Transportation is one of the leading sources of air pollution in Kenya. This is because the country's transportation sector is predominantly based on the combustion of fossil fuels and mainly relies on old, inefficient and poorly maintained vehicles that emit high levels of pollutants into the atmosphere.
According to a report by the United Nations Environment Programme , transport sector in Nairobi alone contributes to about 60 percent of the city's air pollution. “Motorised transport produces harmful pollutants to the environment. This may include Particulate matter (PM 22.5 and PM 10), Nitrogen oxides, Carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds among others. Exposure to such pollutants has adverse health effects,” explains Sammy Simiyu, a public health specialist.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), up to 80 per cent of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) result from modifiable and preventable risk factors such as environmental toxins including air pollution. In Kenya, air pollution contributes to respiratory illnesses, heart disease, stroke and cancer. WHO further indicates that air pollution is responsible for approximately seven million deaths globally each year.
The UN agency estimates that NCDs are expected to account for 41 percent of total deaths in Kenya. A study by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation indicates that air pollution in Kenya is responsible for over 21,000 premature deaths annually.
According to Mr Simiyu, the impact of air pollution on human health, the environment and the economy is significant, making it imperative for the government, private sector and citizens to take urgent measures to curb emissions and improve air quality, and one of such measures includes reducing emissions from transportation.
