Why e-bikes remain slow to take off

POLICY FOCUS

- NATTAPHORN BUAYAM PITNAREE POLSOMBOON

This file photo, dated Dec 12, 2024, shows two of 20 electric motorcycles that local manufacturer Strom (Thailand) donated to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) as part of a campaign to reduce carbon emissions in the capital. SOMCHAI POOMLARD

(SOMCHAI POOMLARD)

Thailand registers an average of 1.7 million new motorcycles each year and is the world's fifth-largest producer, with more than 80% of output sold domestically.

This underscores the strength and scale of the domestic market, which should, in principle, be capable of supporting the shift towards electric motorcycles.

Yet despite substantial government incentives and growing momentum in the electric vehicle (EV) sector, electric motorcycles have not experienced the same level of adoption as electric cars. The gap raises an important question: Why has progress been so limited, despite clear policy ambitions and financial support?

Under the government's “30@30” plan, Thailand wants 30% of all vehicles made by 2030 to be zero-emission. For motorbikes, that means 675,000 produced each year and 650,000 on the road.

To get there, the government launched two subsidy schemes: EV3.0, which gives 18,000 baht per bike, and EV3.5, which offers 5,000 to 10,000 baht. This is the same incentive model for electric cars.

But the results have been uneven. Electric cars are racing ahead, while electric motorbikes are barely moving.

Between January 2019 and September 2025, only 79,674 electric motorbikes were registered, according to the Department of Land Transport. That's a mere 0.0069% out of 11.57 million new motorbikes in total.