By Rorisang Modiba
- The team travelled more than 1,000km in a single day on a bike from Kenya powered only by the sun.
- Professor Thinus Booysen said electric transport will create jobs and help the environment while lowering travel costs across the continent.
A team from Stellenbosch University rode an electric motorcycle from Nairobi to Stellenbosch.
They charged the bike using only solar power for the whole trip.
Along the way, the riders set an unofficial world record. They travelled 1,009.3km in just one day on the electric motorbike.
The team used a Roam Air motorcycle, which is built in Kenya. The bike has a top speed of 117km/h and can travel about 80km on a single charge.
Stephan Lacock, Jason Samuels and Masa Kituyi completed the long journey.
Lacock is a former student at Stellenbosch. He now works with Roam to help grow its business in South Africa. Samuels is the managing director of Green X Engineering.
Professor Thinus Booysen said the trip was not just to get attention.
“Motorcycles are very important for jobs and daily life across Africa,” he said, MyBroadband reported.
He said moving to electric motorcycles will cut costs, use less fuel, make the air cleaner and help local businesses grow.
The project proves that solar powered transport made in Africa can be very important in the future.
Pictured above: The Stellenbosch team.
Image source: Stellenbosch University
