Project Key Facts

The project site is called Pedro Carbo and is located in the coastal region of Ecuador, specifically in the province of Guayas. Pedro Carob is located 1.5 hours by car from Ecuador's largest city, Guayaquil, and is the capital of the canton of the same name, Pedro Carbo. The city of Pedro Carbo has about 21,000 inhabitants and has a length extension of about 2 km or 1.5 km in transverse direction.

The area is completely flat and the cityscape is characterized by mostly 1 to 2-story single-family houses. A large asphalt road runs through the city, which is the main traffic axis towards the coast and therefore has a very high traffic volume. Otherwise, the streets of the community consist mainly of a gravel-clay structure.

In the entire coastal region the tropical climate zone prevails rain & dry season. Within the respective periods constant climates occur. Due to the location of the country at the equator there is a strong and direct vertical solar radiation. Due to the low level of development within the city and the vertical solar radiation, the streets of the city are not shaded during the day and strongly exposed to the sun.

Due to the intense heat, especially during the rainy season, there is a trend among the population of Pedro Carbo to avoid walking and cycling. Even for very short distances motorized means of transport are used. Only few people own their own means of transport. The majority of the population uses Tricis as a means of transport within the city. Tricis (Triciclos) act as cabs and are motorcycles that have a cabin mounted on their rear axle that can transport up to 6 people.

In March 2020, a campaign called "Food for Ecuador" was conducted in the project area by We Sustainable. While COVID-19 put the whole country in a total lockdown, urgently needed food was distributed. Especially families and people from the low wage sector had difficulties to get and pay for food.

By government decision, public transport for motorized vehicles was banned under the lockdown. At that time the focus was on the target group of Trici drivers who drive with pure muscle power and are not motorized like most Tricis. These exactly 20 persons in Pedro Carbo were the only possibility of locomotion during the lockdown and secondly they are basically low income earners. The so-called "Triciclos" (clean and quiet bike cabs) have a long tradition in Ecuador and contribute to a pleasant cityscape, but they are threatened with extinction, because loud and smoking mototaxis are pushing them off the market.

The first contact with the tricicleros took place with food rations for the tricycle drivers and the idea for supporting motorization was first discussed with the local project partner in April 2020.

Pedal-powered tricis are many times cheaper than motorized ones, but the range and speed significantly reduce the potential income. Thereupon the project idea of Igor Luketina was presented to the Engineers Without Borders Vienna group in May 2020, and the first interested parties formed a team that was eager to work. Regular meetings of the project team followed and first contact to the project partner in Ecuador was established with the strong intention to create a social impact by means of electric drives.