The government has drafted two separate guidelines to manage and control electric three-wheeler vehicles and battery-run rickshaws.
Both the drafts, prepared by the ministries of road transport and bridges and local government, rural development and cooperatives, bar all kinds of three-wheelers and rickshaws run by electricity from plying the highways.
They have also set the maximum speed for electric three-wheelers and battery-run rickshaws at 50 kilometres per hour and 25km per hour respectively.
One of the two guidelines titled 鈥楨lectric Three-Wheeler Management Guidelines, 2025鈥� has been drafted by the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority under the road transport and bridges ministry.聽
The draft guideline says that the CNG or petrol-run auto-rickshaws that have been covered under the 鈥楥NG/Petrol-run 4-Stroke Three-Wheeler Service Guidelines 2007鈥� will be allowed to run till their expiry time as designated under law, and after that these vehicles will be scrapped and replaced by new electricity-run auto-rickshaws.
It also suggests that electricity-run auto-rickshaws should be allowed to run on all roads except on the highways.
The other one of the two draft guidelines is 鈥楳ovement of Low-Speed Three-Wheeler Rickshaws (E-Rickshaw) in City Corporations Guidelines, 2025鈥� which has been prepared by the Local Government Division under the local government, rural development and cooperatives ministry.
As the guidelines鈥� name suggests, these E-rickshaws, run by battery or motors, will be allowed to run only inside the city corporation areas.
The two guidelines have been drafted at a time when battery-run and motorised three-wheelers and rickshaws in all kinds of shapes and sizes are swarming the highways and roads across the country, in absolute disregard of repeated bans, causing deadly accidents almost every day.
Currently, two guidelines regarding three-wheeler vehicles and electric vehicles are in force in the country鈥斺�楥NG/Petrol-run 4-Stroke Three-Wheeler Service Guidelines 2007鈥� and 鈥楨lectric Vehicle Registration and Operation Guidelines 2023鈥�.
The 2023 guidelines define electric vehicles as those powered by one or more electric motors, the driving power of which comes from batteries or rechargeable batteries.
It does not, however, specifically mention any kind of three-wheelers, including rickshaws, powered by electricity.
The draft 鈥楨lectric Three-Wheeler Management Guidelines, 2025鈥� in its definition covers electricity-run three-wheeler auto-rickshaws, auto tempos, motor cab rickshaws and vans, describing them as slow-moving vehicles that draw their traction power from rechargeable batteries installed in the vehicles.
It also sets the maximum length of these vehicles at 3.9 metres (12.8 feet), width at 1.5 metres (4.9 feet) and height at 2.1 metres (6.9 feet).聽
It specifically excludes from its coverage battery-run rickshaw vans and those vehicles that are operated by diesel or petrol-run engines used in agricultural machines and motor vessels.聽聽
The draft of the 鈥楳ovement of Low-Speed Three-Wheeler Rickshaws (E-Rickshaw) in City Corporations Guidelines, 2025鈥� defines the vehicle under its coverage as one with three wheels which will be operated by battery and electric motor and approved by the government.
The draft also specifies that the driver of an E-rickshaw will be permitted to carry maximum two passengers.聽
Bangladesh Road Transport Authority officials recently said that on March 24 they submitted the draft guidelines on three-wheeler vehicles to the Road Transport and Highways Division.
They also submitted to the division the draft guidelines on E-rickshaws on March 13, officials said, adding that they had earlier received the draft from the Local Government Division.聽聽聽
Road Transport and Highways Division assistant secretary Md Jasim Uddin told 抖阴精品 that after going through the draft guidelines on three-wheeler vehicles they would send the draft to different ministries concerned and upload them on the division鈥檚 website seeking public opinion.
An inter-ministerial meeting would also be held on the primary drafts, he added.聽
The designated officials of the Local Government Division declined to comment on the draft guidelines on E-rickshaws.
