Mumbai, Sept. 10 -- More than 85% of auto and taxi drivers in the city are aware of electric vehicles (EV) but have been unable to make the transition owing to concerns over lack of charging stations, parking space and high capital costs, according to a survey conducted by Waatavaran, an environmental organisation. The survey report, with responses from 1,200 auto and taxi drivers, was released at an event titled 'Wheels of Change: Understanding EV adoption for Mumbai's Auto and Taxi Drivers' at the Indian Merchants' Chamber in Churchgate on Tuesday. The programme included a panel discussion featuring transport minister Pratap Sarnaik, transport commissioner Vivek Bhimanwar and experts like Avinash Dhakane, member secretary of the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB). Among the 1,200 respondents, 62% were skeptical of switching to EVs due to lack of adequate charging infrastructure and parking space. "We are aware of the issue. Parking spaces have to be fundamentally included in the development plan," said Bhimanwar. For 60% of the auto drivers, high capital investment in the initial stages was a deterrent. An electric auto rickshaw costs around Rs.2.5-3 lakh while a CNG auto is available for Rs.1.5-2 lakh. "Our EV policy has significant subsidies, but requires active participation from auto and taxi drivers," said Sarnaik. Concerns about battery drainage, high battery replacement cost and high maintenance cost were prevalent among 28%, 24% and 20% respondents, respectively, while 15% respondents had safety concerns. "Even if charging stations are available, there is a dearth of parking spaces," said DM Gosavi from the Seva Sarathi Auto Rickshaw Taxi and Transport Union. During the discussion, panelists mooted several ideas to overcome the challenges, such as placing charging stations at BMC parking plots and outside malls and using swappable batteries. "As creating charging infrastructure will take time, autos and taxis should be provided with swappable batteries, so that a spare can be kept handy," said Dhakne. To push adoption of EVs, the report recommended that instead of scrapping vehicles that are 15 years old, such vehicles should be allowed to get green retrofittings. This would bring down the cost of sustainable transition to Rs.1-2 lakh and not require purchase of new vehicles. On Tuesday, Tata Power inaugurated an EV charger hub at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport which will cater to private vehicles, autos and taxis. This will add to the over 1,000 Tata power charging stations located across the city....