BENGALURU: Bringing in a different alternative to the city’s fuel- based vehicles which have been adding to the pollution, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) is finally launching its e-rickshaw service called ‘pick-e-rick’. The service is expected to help students, faculty, staff and visitors at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) to commute easily around the nearly 400-acre campus.
The service will be running on five routes with a distance ranging from 1.94 km to 3.3 km. A total of 10 autos will operate on these routes and will operate six days a week between 8 am and 7.30 pm. The routes had been identified by IISc professor and mobility expert, Ashish Verma.
To make the service more functional within the campus, a one-way trip costs a flat fare of `5 per person and can be paid only through digital mode via an app or e-wallets. There will be no cash transaction. After boarding the E-rickshaw, the user can pay the fare and show the screenshot on the mobile to driver before getting down from the e-rickshaw to avoid any delay and inconvenience to other users. The service will cater to 8,000 students and public visitors.
In addition to this, the institute has signed an MoU with Transvahan Technologies India Pvt. Ltd. for operating e-rickshaws on an ‘Own, Operate, and Maintain’ basis. The rickshaws, once charged, can run for 100 km which is enough for a day’s operation within the campus at speeds of 10-15km/hr.
Ashish Verma told City Express that he himself was trying to practise what he preaches. “This is what I have been trying to propagate in the city in terms of sustainable transport and we are showcasing it in the institute,” he said. Last year, a three-day trial was done during its Open Day where the public was invited to watch experiments and other demonstrations.