NN Special :
Bangladesh’s streets are being reshaped by the rapid rise of the so-called “Tesla rickshaw”-a flashy, battery-run electric three-wheeler that has become an overnight sensation among commuters and drivers alike.
Cheap to operate, easy to charge, and visually appealing, these vehicles have multiplied at astonishing speed.
Yet behind the glittering lights and modern styling lies a growing national problem – these unregulated electric rickshaws are now exerting a heavy toll on the economy, the electricity grid, and the already strained urban transport system.
What was intended as an affordable mobility solution has ballooned into a force pushing our cities toward deeper congestion.
Every new Tesla rickshaw may benefit an individual driver, but collectively they are slowing down the movement of goods, workers, and essential services.
Dhaka’s average traffic speed-already comparable to that of walking pedestrian-drops further as thousands of slow, unstable vehicles flood roads never designed to carry them.
Businesses lose productivity, transport costs rise, and fuel is wasted as cars and buses sit trapped behind slower traffic.
Economists warn that congestion costs Bangladesh billions of dollars every year, and the unchecked growth of these electric rickshaws is quietly adding to that burden.
But the impact does not end on the roads. It extends deep into the nation’s electrical infrastructure.
Tesla rickshaws feed on an electricity supply that is already under strain, charging through household lines, makeshift garages, and illegal connections.
Their charging demand, often concentrated in the evening hours, has begun to overload local transformers, causing voltage drops, power outages, and an increase in system loss for distribution companies.
In several districts, sudden load-shedding has been directly linked to clusters of workshops charging dozens of unregulated vehicles at once.
The national grid-designed for domestic and industrial use, not mass electric mobility-is being quietly stretched to its limits.
The fundamental issue is not electric mobility itself. Bangladesh must and will move toward cleaner transport. The problem is the complete absence of regulation.
These vehicles are manufactured without national standards, sold without safety approval, operated without BRTA licensing, and charged without oversight.
Their batteries vary wildly in quality, their speed controls are unreliable, and their drivers often lack formal training.
Yet they share the road with buses, private cars, ambulances, and motorcycles-contributing to accidents, bottlenecks, and severe road imbalance.
Bangladesh now faces a choice. Continue allowing an unregulated fleet of electric vehicles to grow in the shadows, or take decisive action to integrate them properly into the nation’s transport and energy planning. The path forward is clear:
Remove Tesla rickshaws from major roads and high-speed corridors.
# Restrict them to residential and short-distance neighbourhood routes.
# Introduce national manufacturing and safety standards.
# Create designated charging systems that do not drain the grid.
# Implement digital licensing to control their numbers.
Electric vehicles should symbolise progress-not disorder. Without immediate regulation, Tesla rickshaws will deepen congestion, weaken infrastructure, and undermine the country’s economic gains. With proper oversight, they can contribute to a cleaner and more efficient future.
Bangladesh cannot afford to mistake unregulated expansion for innovation. The time to act is now-before the glow of the Tesla rickshaw becomes the spark of a larger crisis.
