The quiet motorbike

In April I sold my old petrol Wave and bought an electric scooter. My neighbours thought I'd lost my mind. Six months later, I'm not going back, but it hasn't all been plain sailing. Here's what I've learned, for anyone in Hanoi thinking of making the switch.

The running costs are the big win. Charging the battery costs a fraction of what I used to spend on petrol, and there's far less to go wrong. I haven't needed an oil change since spring. It's also wonderfully quiet. At red lights I can hear the street sellers again, and I get to work without smelling of exhaust fumes.

The city wants more of us to switch. Exhaust from petrol motorbikes is widely seen as a major source of air pollution in big Vietnamese cities. Hanoi has announced plans to restrict petrol bikes in the centre. More and more electric models are appearing on the roads, from big local brands and from small importers.

Charging is the real headache. I live in an apartment building, and our basement is packed with bikes. Charging lots of batteries in a crowded space raises fire safety questions, and after a few worrying news stories, our building banned it completely. Now I carry the battery up to the ninth floor twice a week, which is fine until the lift breaks down. Until there are more public charging points or battery-swap stations, this will put a lot of people off.

Then there's the price. A decent electric bike still costs more up front than a basic petrol one. Over the life of the bike, the fuel savings should make up the difference. That's little comfort, though, to a delivery driver who needs a bike next week and can't afford the deposit. I also keep an eye on my range. Mine manages about seventy kilometres on a charge, which is plenty in the city but not enough for a trip to my parents' village.

One more thing worth knowing: an electric bike is only as clean as the power behind it. If much of the electricity comes from coal, the benefit to the climate is smaller than it looks, even if the air on my street is cleaner. I'd still make the same choice. I just wish my building had a safe charging room.