The COVID-19 pandemic not only meant radical changes in the way of socializing, but also left important changes in the mobility of large cities. A large part of the population migrated from public transportation, for fear of becoming infected, to other options for getting around.
Micromobility has been booming in the last two years, tripling light vehicle use in Latin America and the world. In this sense, the Latam Mobility: Chile 2022 meeting held a debate to exchange ideas on the implementation of electric bicycles, scooters and motorcycles in the main metropolises of the region.
In the panel “Clean and Safe Micromobility“, representatives of distinguished companies offered their points of view on the subject and presented advances and projects in the short term.
The CEO of Mobi Latam, Ariel Revollo, stated that micro-mobility as a service is the area that generates the greatest impact, since it saves a large amount of energy compared to an electric car, which is often used by only one person.
He explained that the company started operations in Bolivia and will soon start activities in Peru and Chile, focusing mainly as software and hardware suppliers to the so-called light vehicles.
Read also: Public Transportation: Key to Transition to Sustainable Mobility in Latin America
Revollo revealed that they will carry out the “Mobi Leaders” program, in alliance with the United Nations, to certify companies that change their mobility methods towards sustainability with carbon footprint measurement.
Smart Cargo and Focus on Retail
The General Manager of Smart Cargo, Andrés Alamo, spoke at Latam Mobility: Chile 2022 about the great advances made in micro-mobility in the last two years. The company offers several product lines, but with a strong focus on what is called light electric mobility, which corresponds to tricycles, motorcycles and quadricycles or city cars.
Although its activity has been more noticeable since the pandemic, the company has been working since 2014 in the import of vehicles. At that time they approved more than 30 tricycles, and currently there are more than 5,000 vehicles circulating in the retail and last mile business.
The executive said that after the successful operation in Chile, they began the process of expansion to Colombia, Nicaragua, Peru and Argentina. He explained that among the more than 50 models, of which 28 are homologated to circulate on the streets of Chile, a selection was made of the products that best adapt to the needs, norms and regulations of each market.
“You have to dare to switch to electric mobility. At the beginning it was difficult, charging and prices are one of the main fears, but in the short term solutions will be found to massify electromobility”, said Alamo.
Joining Forces
During the debate on micromobility organized by Latam Mobility, the representative of Segway, Fernando Orellana, emphasized the need for the actors involved in this market to work in an atomized way with the common goal of massifying these new technologies.
“Working with alliances, the Chilean Association of Light Elecromobility has been formed, which brings together many independent sectors and is supported by the public sector to promote these innovations,” he said.
Beyond the great efforts in financing, incentives and key regulations, Orellana considers it fundamental to educate citizens on road matters to encourage a change of mentality when it comes to mobility.
He clarified that he is not against public transport or other forms of mobility, but he highlights the impact and great energy savings of moving around on electric bicycles, scooters and motorcycles.
Orellana emphasized that although there are many obstacles to overcome, micro-mobility represents a path of opportunities and is being taken in the right direction.