
Startup Tackles Rural Transportation Problem in Africa - dskhatri
http://mobiusmotors.com/prototype/index.html
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joe_the_user
The cost of buying the things would matter less than the cost of running the
things.

This looks like a 4-8 person SUV, which would be inherently more expensive to
run regardless of the costs. I would imagine that the kind of vehicle most
useful for an impoverished area would be a _bus_ (as in, the kind of vehicle
most third world people travel in already). Toyota and Mercedes already
manufacture small, rugged buses that seem to make it to the third world
market.

Further, it's hard to beat the price of a used American school bus -
$2000-$5000 for a _thirty-person_ vehicle. American school districts discard a
_lot_ of buses after a few years use due to safety regulations. Oddly enough,
this vehicle class _already_ emphasizes safety and economy. That's why you see
them in Central America frequently, along with the Toyota and Mercedes mini-
buses.

Also, large manufacturers already have large parts networks through-out the
world. It seems unlikely a start-up could duplicate that.

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dskhatri
'The cost of buying the things' matters quite significantly in developing
countries as is evidenced by Tata's high-profile release of the $2200 Nano
(<http://tatanano.inservices.tatamotors.com/tatamotors/>) in India. As
discussed on the site (<http://mobiusmotors.com/demand/alternatives.html>),
high-capacity public transport vehicles already exist in rural Africa. Making
the American school buses rugged enough for the typical rural African roads
and longer travel distances would certainly increase their cost. Mobius Motors
is targeting a market segment similar to that of the Tata Nano.

I posted this article to highlight the growing entrepreneurial confidence in
Africa (Kenya in this case).

~~~
joe_the_user
Hmm,

I'm not an expert on African roads. I know that American School buses do quite
well on the rough, mountainous terrain of Central and South America. They are
tough, simple vehicles and ride fairly high off the ground.

Also, consumers in China, India or where-ever undoubtedly want cars. Despite
this, I think it is unfortunate for automobile-centric development to
progress. In the US, the private automobile has had terrible environmental
track record, a terrible safety record and has enabled a geography of social
isolation (suburbia and sprawl). As the most energy-intensive form of
transportation, the private automobile seems, at the very least, to have
pushed world energy production capacities to the brink. Reproducing this trend
around the world seems undesirable.

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alex_h
This is a great problem to try and solve, but I can't help but think that
there are already vehicles out there which more-or-less fit the bill. The
humble Toyota pickup, for example, has already been put to many uses on this
continent. eg. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_War>

~~~
benologist
Pickup trucks, chicken buses etc don't solve the problem of safety though ...
developing countries have awful road fatality rates and a death in the family
/ loss of vehicle just adds to the problem. Safe, modern vehicles cost so much
relatively they're a similar financial commitment to a 20 year mortgage.

~~~
joe_the_user
I read an article ten years ago claiming that the American school bus was the
single safest form of transportation in the US, carrying millions of children
with a fatality rate of less than 1 per year.

School buses might not have safety belts but the combination of machinery and
procedures they do use apparently works very well. School bus driving is
_very_ regulated.

Cars and other personal vehicles have generally had a poor safety record.
Traffic accidents are still a leading cause of death in the US, though they
have gone down. What is the fundamental reason for this? _A personal vehicle
has the problem of a random person rather than a professional driver driving
it_. This leaves one open to drunk, unqualified, distracted, angry, suicidal
or whatever drivers (of course, you can that problem with a professional but
it's quite likely to be less so). Getting more personal vehicles into an area
that is relatively more lawless would only magnify their problems.

Thus more personal vehicles would not increase the safety of third world
roads. Instead, increasing bus driver training, improving roads and similar
less sexy measures seem in order.

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khandelwal
When I lived in Tanzania, Land Rover Defender (90s and 110s) were the most
popular and seemed to be built for the road conditions.

It's an established platform.

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brianbreslin
clever concept. there are some typos on their site, like break instead of
BRAKE but neat idea. does it mention intended price?

~~~
skushch
They list $6k as the goal vehicle price point.

<http://mobiusmotors.com/prototype/process.html>

