Filipinos are embracing electric three-wheelers faster than officials can regulate them

Manila’s gridlock can exasperate even the most patient drivers, but it does not faze Kyla Adlawon, who weaves between the traffic on an electric tricycle. The red three-wheeled vehicle has ferried her and her family on market runs, errands, and even leisure trips outside the city for four years. But lately, she’s had to take more detours to avoid the main roads, following a government order.

Manila has among the world’s worst traffic congestion . The long commutes mean more fuel consumption, and higher bills for drivers and commuters, but not for Adlawon and a growing number of Filipinos who are hopping onto electric tricycles, commonly known as e-trikes. Most are not registered, and drivers do not have licenses, despite recent efforts to regulate them.

“Commuter fares are so high now, this has really helped us get around cheaply. When a pregnant cousin went into labor, we even rushed her to the hospital on this,” Adlawon, 22, told Rest of World. “I’m willing to apply for a driver’s license, but I wish they would ease the process for us.”

Compared to other Southeast Asian nations such as Thailand , Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam , the Philippines has been a laggard in EV adoption. The government wants EVs to make up half of all vehicles on the road by 2040, but last year, less than 1% of over 14.3 million registered vehicles were electric, according to officials. Only one category of EVs appears to have bucked this trend: light EVs, or two- and three-wheeled vehicles, which the Philippine Land Transportation Office defines as vehicles weighing less than 50 kilograms (110 pounds).

Driven partly by transport restrictions during the Covid-19 pandemic, Filipinos have readily embraced three-wheeled EVs. These are far more affordable than entry-level electric cars; most can easily accommodate a family of four. Most vehicles are assembled locally, with parts imported cheaply from China under a no-tariff policy .

The e-trikes are often customized, with a light roof, and plastic sheets on the sides to shield from the elements. Accessories can include a mini fan, and even Bluetooth speakers. The vehicles come in several configurations: Smaller vehicles can carry one to three passengers. A bigger vehicle, which looks like a tuk-tuk (motorized auto-rickshaw), can ferry up to eight people. These are fast becoming an alternative to aging jeepneys, the iconic Filipino public transport vehicles that are being pushed to modernize.

In hacking affordable alternatives to the country’s poor public transport and pricey fuel bills, Filipinos are doing what people everywhere are doing, from Mexico City to Jakarta , transport economist Robert Siy told Rest of World .

“Now we see many vulnerable sectors of our society being mobile because they have access to e-bikes and e-trikes,” he said. “Globally, [light EVs] are the fastest-growing EVs, and we need to ride that trend. It’s a missed opportunity if we don’t.”

Regulations remain hazy, however, leaving users unsure about their place on the roads and in the country’s EV strategy. In a notice issued in April, authorities said all light EVs that use public roads must be registered, and that their drivers must hold licenses and insurance for their vehicles, or face fines. It also directed manufacturers, assemblers, and importers of light EVs to submit their vehicle’s specifications to determine its classification and the registration fee.

But it is unclear if these orders are in effect: There is no reliable data on how many light EVs there are, and few have license plates. Sellers and distributors are also in the dark, Elvin Maligaya, a materials officer for popular e-bike and e-trike brand Nwow, told Rest of World .

“We have not received any instructions about registration of vehicles,” he said. “So we continue to offer our products the same way to buyers.”

Others fear that the greater scrutiny would scare off prospective customers, especially women who are driving a vehicle for the first time. “Our clients are largely mothers who use the e-trikes to take their children to school,” Mark Anthony Corilla, a technician at Jonson E-bike, told Rest of World . “If you require them to have a driver’s license and register the vehicle, our sales might fall.”

Nevertheless, authorities are doubling down. In May, the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) banned light EVs — along with diesel tricycles and pedicabs — from plying on several main thoroughfares in the capital region Metro Manila, where a population of about 15 million struggles with inadequate public transport. Violators face a fine of 2,500 pesos ($44). Officials cited road safety as the reason, saying there were nearly 1,000 crashes involving light EVs last year.

“We will not wait for these figures to go higher and the situation to worsen,” MMDA chairperson Don Artes told reporters .

But banning light EVs would thwart efforts to fast-track the country’s EV adoption, mobility advocates told Rest of World . Light EVs also account for only a fraction of crashes, injuries, and fatalities.

“[These restrictions] are trying to render e-trikes and e-bikes uncompetitive in the market and practically useless as regular modes of travel,” said Siy, who is also a convenor for Move As One , a coalition of dozens of local organizations advocating for inclusive transport. “Instead, the government should ensure safe roads for those using alternative mobility, including e-trikes and e-bikes.”

Judith Grimpula, a first-time driver with an e-trike, cannot understand the government’s opposition. A mother of four, she struggled to cobble together 37,000 pesos ($657) to buy her Super A e-trike last year, she told Rest of World . “They say we simply add to the traffic. But we don’t add to pollution, and for poor people like us, we could use the money we save from commuting to buy food instead,” the 35-year-old said, as she herded her three younger children onto her e-trike. “Sadly, there are people who are against seeing us on the streets. But they have no idea how much this e-trike has changed our lives.” ▰

Jhesset O. Enano Jhesset Enano is an independent journalist based in Manila.