TWELVE ELECTRIC JEEPNEYS (eJeepneys) rolled out of their charging station at the Makati Fire Department Tuesday morning, ready to provide residents in two villages in the city with an alternative and ?green? form of transport.

The best part, however, is that passengers get to ride for free in the environment-friendly vehicles which will take residents of Salcedo and Legazpi Villages to and from the Landmark department store.

The eJeepneys will ply the route on weekdays during the following hours: From 7 a.m. to 10 a.m., followed by 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., and finally, from 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

Climate solution

?We are making the climate solutions of tomorrow available for Filipinos today,? said Red Constantino, director of the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC) at the launch of the project dubbed as the eJeepney Makati Green Route.

Constantino said the institute?s vision was to offer free rides on the eJeep for as long as possible.

?I?m not going to say forever, only because we?d like eJeepneys to be adopted by jeepney operators and drivers. We don?t want to replace them. In fact, we are doing this so the operators and franchisers can consider replacing their fleet one by one,? he added.

Cheaper in the long run

Constantino said that although an eJeepney sells from P550,000 to P600,000, jeepney drivers and operators would still find it cheaper as they would no longer be dependent on gasoline.

?And they won?t be affected by DOE, [Department of Energy] for example, saying ?There?s no (oil) supply,?? he pointed out.

Makati City Administrator Marjorie de Veyra said the city was planning to appropriate funds for the manufacture and operations of the green vehicle.

According to her, the city will expand the ?green route? to the Edsa-Estrella-Rockwell area and possibly other destinations.

Each of the 12 eJeepneys can run for 65 kilometers after eight hours of charging.

With the help of its major funder, the Stichting Doen, a Dutch foundation, the ICSC implemented the project to help reduce the carbon dioxide emission of transport vehicles.

The 3-year-old project recently bagged the top award in Discovery Channel?s Ecopolis program. It was touted as a new transportation technology that can transform modern cities today.

According to ICSC, climate change-inducing carbon dioxide emission levels were expected to triple in Asia in the next 20 years. The rise was mainly attributed to the transport sector.

Constantino said they wish to offer free rides on eJeepneys for a long time and rely instead on the income they generate from business partners? advertisements.

Former beauty queen Miriam Quiambao, a supporter of ICSC, drove one eJeepney from the charging station up to LandMark where the eJeepney stop sign was unveiled.

And as the eJeepneys took to the road, people?s heads turned and all eyes were on the green vehicles.

?Soon, eJeepneys will be a common thing on the road. And they are here to stay,? Constantino said.

The eJeepneys were manufactured by the Motor Vehicle Parts Manufacturers Association of the Philippines with the help of the National Center for Transportation Studies at the University of the Philippines, Philippine Bio Sciences Co. Inc., the British Embassy, Oxfam Great Britain, Greenpeace Southeast Asia, Foundation of the Philippine Environment and Binalot Fiesta Foods.