Eton Centris, a township project of Eton Properties located at the corner of Edsa and Quezon Avenue, recently announced that it will be the first command center for the City Optimized Managed Electric Transport (Comet).
The Comet, a zero emission city shuttle that is targeted to replace regular jeepneys, is being tested in the Philippines through the cooperation of Global Electric Transportation (GET), Gawad Kalinga (GK), and drivers group Pasang Masda.
GET, headed by former Taguig representative Freddie Tinga, is the local distributor of the electric shuttle.
The Comet will be manufactured by Pangaea Motors, an American group of experts in electric vehicle technology. A local assembly plant is being put up in Santa Rosa, Laguna.
Running on lithium-ion cobalt batteries, the Comet will run at a controlled speed of 60km/hr with a range of up to 100kms on a 5-hour full-charge.
Pasang Masda, the oldest jeepney association in Metro Manila, has committed to purchasing 10,000 units of The Comet and member-drivers have already undergone the required training conducted by Gawad Kalinga.
According to Tinga, ?There are 55,000 jeepneys on the roads of Metro Manila, and it was found that 85 percent of the pollution in the Metro is caused by poorly maintained vehicles like the jeep. Apart from that, there is this competition among the drivers for passengers which leads to unnecessary traffic and road accidents.
?With the Comet in place, we are proposing a crowd-funding approach where all drivers and operators will earn from the pool. This will minimize competition and will encourage the spirit of ?bayanihan? amongst the stakeholders.?
Pasang Masda is expecting a total of 20,000 units of the Comet to be on the road by 2020.
