Parbati’s journey into Nepal’s electric future

As air pollution worsened, the Nepalese government decided to phase out polluting three-wheelers in the late 1990s. Safa Tempos emerged as an alternative. Battery-powered, locally assembled and well suited to Kathmandu’s narrow streets, they quickly became essential to the city’s transport network.

After the Nepal government banned diesel Tempos in 1993, many electric three-wheelers were on the road. By the early 2000s, the fleet had grown to more than 600 vehicles.

At a time when electric mobility was still a niche concept globally, Kathmandu had already created one of South Asia’s earliest examples of electric public transport. Safa Tempos have remained a vital part of daily life in the valley, demonstrating that electric transport can work in a developing urban context.

Today, the system that facilitated Parbati’s career is under threat. The Safa Tempo fleet is ageing. Originally granted 20-year operating permits, many vehicles have      received and already used the 10-year extension. That extension is now nearing its end, with only a few years remaining and no clear decision about what comes next.

Replacing vehicles requires significant investment, while affordable credit remains difficult to access. High battery costs mean that many drivers rely on informal financing or second-hand parts to keep their vehicles running. Meanwhile, new types of electric vehicles are entering the market.

For drivers who have spent decades behind the wheel, the future of the Safa Tempo fleet is therefore deeply personal.

The Nepal – Electric Transport is working to ensure that Nepal’s shift toward electric mobility is both inclusive and sustainable. A key focus is supporting women to participate in the next generation of electric transport.

For Parbati, this meant stepping into the next phase of her career. When the project launched a training programme for electric microbus drivers, she applied.
Moving from a three-wheeler to a larger vehicle requires a new licence, different driving skills and confidence to operate in more demanding conditions. 

Training includes figure-eight manoeuvres, hill starts and circuit navigation. With guidance from instructors and support from peers, confidence grows.

Parbati now holds a four-wheeler licence. But the vehicle is another matter. In 2025 the central bank tightened the loan-to-value ratio on hire purchase from 80:20 to 60:40, doubling the deposit a buyer has to put down.

The project’s subsidy package closes part of that gap but not all of it, and for women drivers, that 40% is a considerable barrier, and it falls hardest on women drivers, who have historically had far less access to credit and to property in their own names. 
 

Since the training, Parbati has also encouraged others in the Safa Tempo community to join the second training cohort. She spoke up about how this training has created a community of women with shared skills, ambitions and a support network as they move into the electric microbus sector. Interest among women is growing and applications for the programme have increased, with many women learning about it through word of mouth. 

Her experience shows that women are ready to enter and further shape Nepal’s electric transport sector – when they are given the opportunity. 
Parbati has spent twenty years running her own vehicle on her own terms. She intends to keep doing so.