36 e-autos launched by DMRC at Azadpur; all driven by women drivers

DMRC metro station e-autos: The e-autos operate on a base fare of ₹10 for the first 2 kilometres and ₹5 for every subsequent kilometre.

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) and electric mobility as a service company, ETO Motors, on Tuesday launched 36 electric-autos (e-autos) at the Azadpur metro station.

Women drivers standing next to e-autos during the launch of  last mile connectivity to DMRC metro stations (HT Photo)

The 36 e-autos - they all will be driven by women drivers - take the total number of e-autos being operated from metro stations in Delhi to 86, up from the current 50 e-autos operating from three stations, Dwarka, Dwarka Sector 21 and Janakpuri).

The e-auto services were started on October 19, 2022. The autos operate on a base fare of ₹10 for the first 2 kilometres and ₹5 for every subsequent kilometre.

ETO Motors said its EV charging solution, Thunderbox, will be installed across Delhi at various metro stations including Azadpur, as well as residential societies and public locations in order to facilitate the usage of e-autos and other electric vehicles. The company has been given permission by DMRC to run over 300 e-autos.

“ETO Motors will add more e-autos on Delhi roads and more parking and charging hubs will be developed at Kalkaji, Uttam Nagar, Dwarka and Majlis Park metro stations. The figure will touch 100 e-autos in the next few months,” a company official said.

The company has partnered with Delhi’s transport department, GMR’s Varalakshmi Foundation, The School of Driving & Training Institute in Burari (DTI) and the Institute of Driving and Traffic Research (IDTR) at Sarai Kale Khan to mobilise and train its women driver partners.

“Diversity has always been one of the key pillars for ETO Motors right since inception. As part of our commitment towards greater gender diversity, ETO Motors has successfully trained 100 young unemployed women to drive electric autos in the 100% EV city of Kevadia (Ekta Nagar) in Gujarat and now we are going to deploy 300 electric autos at the metro stations in Delhi in collaboration with DMRC in a phased manner, all driven by women drivers to provide the much-required first and last mile connectivity services to metro commuters in the capital,” said Pavan Chavali, ETO Motors managing director.

Anuj Dayal, principal executive director, corporate communications, DMRC said: “The introduction of these e-autos will improvise the last mile connectivity for passengers of nearby localities. In recent years, DMRC has introduced many eco-friendly initiatives to ensure a robust last-mile connectivity system, which enables the commuters to prefer non-polluting public transport modes over personal vehicles.”

The 36 e-autos run on 7.37kilowatt hours capacity lithium-Ion battery, which charges within 3-4 hours and can run for 100km on a single charge. The vehicle has a top speed of 45 km per hour.