Electric mobility has been gradually gaining traction in much of the Americas over the last five years. Many governments have developed strategies to promote the electrification of their transport systems to deliver on their decarbonisation commitments, which includes reducing the number of vehicles and fleets using fossil fuels as a source of energy.

Considering that the main source of greenhouse gas emissions in the region is the transport sector – public and private – which is responsible for 39 per cen of total emissions, achieving a just transition is fraught with challenges.

In 2019, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) said that Latin America could save US$621 billion a year and avoid 1.1 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide if it fully electrified all transport networks, both maritime and land-based, by 2050. Two years later, in 2021, despite the pandemic, according to a report released by the same body, 27 of the 33 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean had already prioritised this sector as a key component of the strategies to achieve their emission cutting targets.

Data from E-Bus Radar – a platform developed by organisations such as the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) that tracks the introduction of electric buses in public transport systems in Latin America – reflects part of this commitment: over the last six years, the number of electric buses in the region has increased almost sevenfold, from 725 in 2017 to 4,998 in 2023. While the growth of electric bus fleets is not keeping pace with the growth of the cities, UNEP points out that this “rapid urbanisation” is creating opportunities to make electric buses a priority.

Mayra Madriz, an urban planner and expert in sustainable mobility, tells Equal Times that electric transport systems should be integrated, and should also include electric scooters and bicycles. “People need to know, ‘ah, I can get off the bus and there will be a scooter I can use to complete my journey, or to take me to the next means of transport, or I can use a bike for shorter distances’”. To meet this objective, one of the tasks ahead is to redesign roads to enable the completion of journeys. The number of charging stations also needs to be increased, or there will be less interest in using electric vehicles.

“In Latin America, buses and privately owned vehicles were often associated with different economic levels. Under the modern conception of mobility, this is largely left behind; what is being adopted are mobility frameworks as a system, offering a range of clean modes of transport, including ‘walkability’ as a legitimate mode of transport, and investments are being made in infrastructure for all of them, from cycling to mass transit or public transport, and, on different scales, small electric buses, trains, etc.,” explains the urban planner.

Her arguments are backed by a UN report on public-private dialogue on electromobility. The document highlights that in the case of public transport, fleets need to be replaced and the different modes of electric transport, such as the metro or trolleybuses, need to be expanded both at national and regional level. This would allow for greater accessibility, which, in turn, requires government funding or subsidies to ensure that these services are not considered a luxury owing to their cost.

“Improving access to the system is essential. Attempts to improve quality through price increases that put tariffs beyond the reach of a population with marked differences in purchasing power undermine its role as a public service,” warns the report.

In countries such as Argentina, to address inequalities within the sector, the World Bank has provided loans to electrify transport services to reach the most vulnerable low-income areas of Buenos Aires and to serve the northern and western suburbs of the city.

Colombia, meanwhile, is working to create routes that benefit people with limited resources. In Bogotá, for example, the public transport operator La Rolita, with a fleet of 100 per cent electric buses, serves 21 neighbourhoods in Ciudad Bolivar, which is considered a low-income rural area and the largest in Bogotá.

Also, according to a report on electromobility in public transport in Latin America (La electromovilidad en el transporte pública de América Latina), Santiago de Chile (Chile) and Montevideo (Uruguay) are assessing technological and infrastructural adjustments to ensure that they can complete existing routes, so as not to leave any communities unserved.

Edgar Díaz, regional secretary for Latin America at the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), points to the work done by the organisation to promote “multimodal systems [a combination of different means of transport]”, with special electric transport that is able to reach more remote areas. “We talk about the electromobility of countries, regions, but we forget the asymmetries within cities themselves, where the progress is not uniform,” he explains.

Furthermore, while the UN report states that “virtually all countries in Latin America and the Caribbean have legislation that encourages the introduction and use of electric vehicles at the national level”, this is not enough to achieve a just transition (as environmental concerns are taken on board but not the workers who could lose their jobs). As Díaz points out, it is therefore essential that trade unions be involved, that the voice of the workers be central to the decision-making process, not least because although the transition to green transport creates jobs in this sector it entails their destruction in others.

A report by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Jobs in a Net-Zero Emissions Future in Latin America and the Caribbean, while referring to the potential to generate millions of jobs worldwide by boosting electric vehicle manufacturing and stepping up investment in public transport, does not hide the fact that, although “the net impact is positive”, there will be “winners and losers in such a transition”.

Díaz comments, in this respect, that “the issue of conversion [the reskilling and redeployment of workers] is crucial, as technological advances mean that there comes a time when people working in certain areas are no longer needed. It is therefore vital that these employees are not left jobless, but that a parallel job is created with the same benefits and conditions.”

The ILO has insisted on the importance of employers’ and workers’ organisations, especially those representing informal workers with little access to social protection and those in lower-level jobs, taking part in the planning of sustainable transport projects, with social dialogue playing a decisive role in achieving a truly just transition that includes “mechanisms for retraining and upskilling”. In spite of these recommendations, it also points out that “most workers’ organisations in the informal transport economy are in some form of cooperative and informal self-help group, which are not recognised or registered as trade unions, and are very rarely included in formal tripartite processes or structures”.

An example of this has already been observed in Colombia. After the creation of TransMilenio, incorporating electric buses, between 1,900 and 2,800 jobs were created. These replaced other jobs, classed as informal and insecure, but not all the workers were absorbed and many minibus drivers were left out of work.

Díaz explains that trade unions have been working to promote understanding between the key players: governments, employers and transport operators. But the actual progress made in terms of working conditions and social protection has varied according to the political circumstances and the clean transport culture in each country.

He points to Mexico and Chile as being among the most advanced in Latin America, as they have encouraged the adoption of electric vehicles through financial and credit mechanisms and incentives. And while they continue to face cost-related challenges with regard to achieving large-scale uptake of ts type of transport, both governments have promoted agreements with companies to secure the electrification of their fleets. Moreover, according to the ILO, both countries have included all stakeholders, from operators to fare collectors, in the decision-making processes on transport electrification plans.

Gender equality and electromobility

The rise of electromobility has also raised the crucial issue of gender equality in the transport sector, where women represent between eight and 21 per cent of the workforce in the region.

To close the gender gaps in the sector, or at least to try to – this being one of the fundamental development pillars for the Americas – the IDB created the Transport Gender Lab (TGL), a network of 12 cities promoting technical dialogue on the incorporation of women into the transport system, both as users and service providers.

The organisation has recommended that Latin American governments promote special training and capacity building programmes to enable more women to work as drivers, mechanics and in the manufacture of electric buses and vehicles, and to design policies that encourage transport companies to promote inclusive electromobility by employing more women in managerial and operational roles.

IDB consultants highlight through the Moviliblog - Transport and Mobility Ideas for Latin America platform that “the future of mobility” will create new jobs, ranging from battery and electric motor manufacturing to driving, repair and digital innovation, that could go to a greater number of women.

These recommendations are now being implemented in Bogotá, which is a member of the TGL.

Catherine Contreras started out driving school vans and health vehicles, all of which were diesel-powered and maintaining them was hard work. But a year ago, her working life became easier in some respects, as she became one of the drivers for the district public transport operator La Rolita, thanks to a project launched by the city council.

She took courses run jointly by the Women’s Secretariat and the District Mobility Secretariat as part of the Eco Conducción programme, for which they invited women drivers who were mothers or heads of household to train in electric mobility and driving. She underwent interviews and training to become one of the 450 women that joined the company and had their driving licences re-categorised.

“Since La Rolita has promoted a female workforce, private companies are also now training more women. Empowerment is encouraged here and there are more opportunities; our self-esteem and self-respect are raised, for excelling in a job that used to be purely male. Now, we are part of the city’s good public service and mobility,” Contreras tells Equal Times.

For this driver, another plus is that La Rolita operates in the south of the metropolis, in “vulnerable” areas such as Ciudad Bolívar, where not many routes use to be offered because, “fare evasion meant that not much revenue was generated for the private operators”. People can now travel on electric buses on the 10 different lines serving this part of the city.

The same workers, however, feel that some adjustments should be made in terms of their working hours and wages. “We have asked that the hours not be so long, because most of us are mothers, heads of households, and we have children that are still young,” she said.

According to their contracts, all employees are supposed to work eight hours a day, but they often accumulate up to 14 and 16 hours a day. Both the men and the women are affected by this situation. In February this year, in fact, according to local media such as El Espectador, La Rolita dismissed a driver – who was subsequently reinstated – after complaining to the Bogotá Council about the poor working conditions affecting the company’s employees. He complained that they had to cover very long hours due to the “staff shortages” and also demanded that all drivers be paid a fixed rate.

More than eight out of ten countries in the Americas are currently committed to electromobility plans to lower CO2 emissions and move towards decarbonisation. This has led to infrastructural improvements that are keeping the sector operational. Although countries like Chile – according to the Chilean Chamber of Automotive Commerce (Cavem) – now have the world’s second largest fleet of electric buses after China, for many others the electrification of transport is a major challenge. While progress has been made in terms of education and awareness of the environmental benefits of transport electrification, investment in the sector is teetering between the challenge and necessity.