Enrico Halim
Take a
ride on the wild side
If you’re
around Jakarta’s Jalan Sudirman next month (June), fed up with air-conditioned
luxury cabs and feeling adventurous, keep an eye open for a pink bemo.
Or maybe
magenta. The color is still being
debated, but it’s likely to be standout shrill.
Either way
the driver will be Pak Kinong so you’ll be in good hands. He knows the back streets like his steering
wheel because he’s been driving the noisy, smelly three-wheel rattletraps since
1970.
Except that
this time he’ll be at the controls of a clean and quiet spruced-up electric
machine – the Bio Bemo.
So if
you’re ready to chance a ride you’ll be helping take down the capital’s
appalling pollution by a few grams of carbon monoxide, which has to be all
good.
So where’s
the risk? Although the bemo has been
mechanically checked it shouldn’t be on the road.
Law-conscious
Westerners shy at riding unlicensed transport because it might void insurance
policies, but that doesn’t seem to bother too many Indonesians, including
Enrico Halim, the man behind the Bio Bemo
“We want
the machine registered but transport laws don’t say anything about electric
bemos,” he said. “So the bureaucrats
have told us to go away and find a solution workable to them.
“Most
technical issues have been fixed – it’s the paperwork blocking us from going
forward. We’ve spoken to Jokowi
(Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo) who said the idea is ‘very interesting’.” A low
wattage response, but Team Bio Bemo sees a spark of support.
Enrico, 44, doesn’t fit the image of grease-stained mechanical inventor. Originally from Bandung he’s a graphic artist trained in the US who teaches part-time at Tarumanegara University. He set up an agency called Aikon, ‘an institution for the open minded pursuing the better Indonesia’.
A petrolhead he is not. He rides a (non-electric) motorbike and is more interested in making his city safe and sweet than being seen at the wheel of a black saloon from Stuttgart.
Which is
why he’s pushing to convert old bemos to electric power locally rather than
import glitzy modern machines – a solution favored by the big transport
operators.
Bemos may
have been sidelined but there are still about 500 operating from eight stations
in Jakarta. “They are part of our heritage, first imported from Japan during
the Soekarno era,” Enrico said. “Sadly our education doesn’t teach us to
respect history.
“Bemo are
efficient, able to negotiate narrow and crowded streets, to go on roads
inaccessible to other vehicles. They are particularly good shifting produce to
and from traditional markets.”
The two
stroke engines are noisy, thirsty and dirty.
So Enrico and his mates have built a pick-up using four standard
batteries and a Chinese 48-volt brushless electric motor.
The orange
prototype has been on the roads for almost three months. The next model, out soon, will carry
passengers.
The gas
engine and transmission have been removed, so the clunky gear system has also
been eliminated, giving passengers a smoother ride.
It’s
claimed the maximum distance is 75 kilometers on a full charge, though best to
park after 50 to avoid battery damage.
This is within the range of many routes, though not all. An overnight
battery top up using a standard household cable should cost a few thousand
rupiah.
Enrico
isn’t all torque - he’s also into social engineering. “I want to put the Bio Bemo within the reach of owner–drivers,”
he said. “At the moment they earn about Rp 150,000 (US$15) a day but more than
half of that goes on gas and oil.
“We’ve been
talking to banks and should be able to negotiate a Rp 30 million (US$3,000)
loan for conversions, repaid over 30 months with the money saved.
“Half the
drivers who have seen the Bio Bemo are enthusiastic. The others are worried about range and recharging time. We’re considering is a battery exchange
program.”
Jaywalkers
won’t be able to hear or smell the Bio Bemos so a “fun sound” from little drums
on the Bio Bemo’s wheels may be added to alert the unwary.
Enrico has
long been keen on alternative energy and for a while experimented with hydrogen
power. His interest switched to electricity when visiting his daughter Kintaka
who is studying in New Zealand. In
Wellington he saw local government staff driving electric-powered cars to
promote the capital’s clean and green credentials.
Using the
Internet (“my mechanic is Pak Google”) he plugged into an international ring of
incandescent electric vehicle enthusiasts.
They included pioneers of the Philippines’ distinctive E-Jeepneys, the
flamboyantly decorated electric mini-busses now becoming popular in
Manila. Three experts came to Jakarta
and gave advice.
Overseas
aid agencies have signalled interest in the Bio Bemo (Greenpeace backed the
E-Jeepney project). However Enrico is
wary of getting too much support that could over-engineer the bemos, ramp costs
and make the vehicles too dear for drivers.
For
example, lithium batteries and fast chargers would triple the conversion cost.
“Our
Filipino friends couldn’t imagine why our government isn’t supporting the
project,” Enrico said. “They also noted that electricity in Jakarta is about
half the cost of power in Manila.
“I hoped we
might interest local universities, but there’s been no enthusiasm. It seems the Bio Bemo isn’t sexy or modern
enough. Of course we’re using really
old technology and looking for long-term solutions.
“Everyone
seems to be depending on Jokowi and Ahok
(deputy governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama) to have
all the ideas and do everything.
“They are just two men. We should solve problems ourselves. The main point is this: Why doesn’t the government see this as a
practical solution to some of Jakarta’s transport problems?”
Maybe it will after the Bio Bemo team heads
to City Hall on 22 June in an all-out bid to turn on the public servants’
interest and maybe even get them to authorize registration.
In that case foreigners might be more willing
to try a trip.
(First published in The Jakarta Post, 3 June 2013)
##
No comments:
Post a Comment