Problem

According to Colombia’s Ministry of Transportation, of the nearly 19 million vehicles in Colombia, more than 60% are motorcycles. This means of transport is particularly important in small municipalities and rural areas, including Mingueo, rural Colombia. These motorcycles run mostly on internal combustion engines, hence contributing to pollution and impacting consumers with rising high fuel and maintenance costs. 

In Colombia, electrification of transportation vehicles has been focused on urban areas, where infrastructure and shorter trips make electric vehicles more viable. The transition to low-carbon transportation in rural areas faces more challenges, including  limited infrastructure for electric charging, the high cost of electricity, and a lack of local industries for maintenance and repairs. These barriers prevent the widespread adoption of electric motorcycles in rural regions, hindering sustainable mobility and economic opportunities for rural communities.

Responses

The E-Rurality project in La Guajira is a partnership between the University of La Guajira, POLEN Transiciones Justas, and EOLO Motors. The project aims to advance Colombia’s low-carbon transition in transportation by training over 12 young people from the Mingueo community in converting motorcycles to electric vehicles through retrofits, promoting sustainable mobility and reducing emissions. In addition, E-Rurality aims to enhance local economic growth by enabling participants to offer conversion services. Participants also benefit from lower operational costs and savings of over 90% on fuel. By sharing the project’s results with the Ministry of Mining and Energy, the initiative aims to scale this model to other regions, supporting a  transition to electromobility across rural Colombia.

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