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At a major intersection in Jakarta, Indonesia during a recent morning rush hour, a low rumble permeates the sticky air. Dozens of motorbikes and scooters idle impatiently at a stoplight. As the light turns green, the rumble crescendos into an ear-splitting drone as the two-wheelers accelerate away.

This scene plays out all day, every day at major intersections across South-East Asia, where motorized two-and three-wheelers, such as motorcycles, scooters and tuk-tuks, are the transport of choice for many. Over 80 per cent of households in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Viet Nam, for example, own motorcycles. In the six largest economies of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), sales of motorcycles and scooters reached over 13.7 million units in 2019. Only China and India saw more sales.

But that is becoming a major problem. Along with being noisy, the mushrooming number of conventional motorcycles and scooters is driving up energy consumption, air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

To combat those problems, countries across South-East Asia, with support from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), are encouraging drivers to trade in gas-guzzlers for electric motorbikes.

“Huge parts of South-East Asia get around on two and three wheels,” said Bert Fabian, Programme Officer for the United Nations Environment Programme’s Air Quality and Mobility Unit. “Transitioning this fleet to electric models will help reduce pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, especially when properly integrated into public transport systems.”

UNEP has worked with electric vehicle associations in Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand to develop comprehensive recommendations for policymakers to spur the adoption of electric two- and three-wheelers.

Some of these measures include manufacturing and consumer subsidies, tax and insurance adjustments for electric and more pollutive vehicles and mandating fuel economy standards and consumption limits. 

Countries in the region have made headway with some of these measures. Thailand, for example, is aiming to produce 53,000 electric motorcycles by 2025 and is planning a trade-in scheme to make electric vehicles cheaper. Indonesia has plans to phase-out conventional motorcycles from 2025. And Malaysia and other countries have developed extensive motorcycle-only infrastructure that encourages their uptake.