Behind the Advantages of Motorcycles without Noise

MARGARETHA PUTERI ROSALINA

Ismail (42) a GoRide Electric driver rides a Gogoro brand electric motorcycle in the Benhil area. He became one of the participants in the electric motorcycle trial at the Electrum company.

One day, Faozi (30), a GoRide Electric driver, almost collided with another motorcyclist at a turn in a busy residential area in Jakarta. He forgot to honk the horn, as a signal for his motorbike to enter an alley.

Motorcyclists who were coming out of the road also did not think there was another motorbike heading towards them. Faozi's electric motorcycle does not make a sound like motorcycles that use gasoline (BBM).

"I was sorry that I surprised the woman who rode the motorbike, because I forgot to make a sound," said Faozi, laughing. Since that incident, Faozi always honks his horn if he wants to overtake other drivers or turn a corner. The Gogoro brand of electric motorcycles that Faozi owns is almost inaudible. Not a sound. This is one of the advantages of electric motorcycles.

Mail (42), a Gogoro driver, had a similar experience. Mail submitted his complaint to Gojek's management. "Finally, Gogoro added a 'tung-tung' sound when the vehicle reaches a speed of 20 kilometers per hour and 40 km per hour," Mail said in a coffee shop in the Bendungan Hilir area in Central Jakarta.

Saving costs

Silence is only a small part of the advantages of electric motorcycles. Cost savings are often mentioned when promoting the use of electric motorcycles.

AKompas analysis shows that the average cost per 100 km for a motorcycle with gasoline is Rp 20,703 (US$1.36), while the average fare per 100 km for an electric motorbike is only Rp 4,306. This means that the use of electric motorcycles can save about 20 percent of expenses.

Paulina (27), a GoRide Electric driver with a Gesits motorbike, shared her experience over the last 8 months. “I used to buy Pertamax fuel for Rp 40,000 per day or now it has increased to Rp 60,000 per day. After riding Gesits, I only spent Rp 30,000 per day for rent. I can save 50 percent," she said.

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Currently, Gesits riders are charged a rental rate of Rp 30,000 per day and the battery swap is still free. If there is damage to the motorbike, services are free of charge at Gojek's special workshops.

Ahmad, the driver of Grab Electric brand Viar, acknowledges that one of the advantages is that he does not need to buy gasoline. Two months ago, his gasoline motorbike broke down. Ahmad then rented an electric motorbike at Grab where he has worked for several years.

For two months, using Viar electricity, Ahmad felt lucky to be able to go to work even though he did not have money to buy gasoline. “Fortunately, if I don't have money to buy fuel, I can still go to work. Go, yes, just go, no need to bring money," he said in front of the Grab Tangerang office in Cisauk.

No pollution

Electric motorcycles that do not emit pollutant emissions are considered as one of the "green" vehicles to reduce the impact of climate change. That's what prompted a resident of Palmerah, West Jakarta, Sofian (50), to buy an electric motorcycle with the Gesits brand two years ago. "I try to play a part in reducing climate change," he said.

Sofian, who is an employee of the Directorate General of Taxes, uses Gesits for daily activities at short distances, such as going to the mosque or the market. However, he has never used it to go to the office because it's too far (25 km round trip). "I'm tired of having to charge it every day," he said.

KOMPAS/PRIYOMBODO

One of the GoRide Gojek driver partners exchanged electric motorcycle batteries at Pertamina gas stations, Jalan MT Haryono, South Jakarta, Thursday (24/2/2022).

Long before the government launched the regulation for electric vehicles in 2019, residents of Agats district, Papua, had already used electric motorcycles. The uneven distribution of fuel has made the electric motorcycle market in Agats grow.

Starting from one brand, namely Wimcycle, which entered the market in 2009, now there are many brands available such as Sunrace, Selis Agats and Super.

Mario (33), an employee of the Agats Regional Hospital, said that the presence of electric motors in Agats helps people's mobility. "If we use an electric motor, we don't need to walk all the way from end to end. For example, from Kampung Pelangi to Kampung Bais, it takes 1 hour," he said.

Weak point

Despite these advantages, electric motorcycles still have problems ranging from service and after-sales service, expensive battery prices to limited battery swap locations.

Sofian's Gesits, for example, is now unable to turn on even though the battery is fully charged. Sofian has to repair his motorbike at the Gesits workshop in Cawang, East Jakarta.

So it's like buying a new motorcycle, right?

This is quite a hassle for Sofian because he has to take Gesits with a towing system and load the motorbike onto a pickup truck to get to Cawang. During the previous breakdown, Gesits technicians were willing to come to his house in Palmerah.

The high price of the batteries is also an obstacle. Mario, who has been using an electric motor for 10 years in Agats, once replaced the battery and controller module at the same time because the motor caught fire and was deliberately thrown into the swamp to extinguish the fire. "It drained my pocket due to the high price of the battery and controller," he complained.

Moreover, he had to pay around Rp 8 million to replace the two spare parts. "So it's like buying a new motorcycle, right?" he said.

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In addition to the high price, the non-uniform battery specifications also make it difficult for people to replace the battery at a swap facility. That's what makes Ahmad's income not increase significantly.

"So I can't accept long-distance orders that exceed the capacity of the motorcycle battery," he said. Viar motorcycle battery swap locations in Greater Jakarta are only available in three places, namely in Lengkong Gudang (South Tangerang), Jati Pulo (West Jakarta) and Cakung (East Jakarta).

"If my battery is 20 percent low and my location is far from the battery swap, I have to turn off the application. If I turn it off, I don’t get any income," he complained.

Ahmad also hopes that the location of the special battery swap for Viar motorbikes will be increased.

This silent motor is not yet perfect to replace the motor with fuel. There is still a lot of homework that the government, manufacturers and researchers have to do in order to improve the electric motor. If it is perfect, of course, air pollution and noise pollution can be reduced. Furthermore, riding on the streets the motorcycle is barely audible.

This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi.