A patent recently discovered by Autoguide reveals that Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing has devised a pedal and crank system to help charge ride-sharing EVs, ultimately reducing their need to recharge and giving discounted fares depending on how much work each rider does during their ride.

Doing Work for Cheap Rides and the Environment

The truth is that electric ride-sharing vehicles will have one major fallback and that fallback is that they will occasionally be out of service in order to charge. So, Toyota has come up with the brilliant idea to install hand or foot cranks in front of each seat, allowing passengers to charge the vehicle’s battery while in route to their destination. Apparently, the hard the passengers pedal during their trip the larger the discount they’ll receive when they arrive at their destination.

Theoretically, this kind of setup could ultimately reduce the amount of time a ride-sharing EV is out of service for charging, but it’s also being knocked at the same time. Some outlets, Autoguide included, suggest it would simply be better to ride a bike or walk to their destination. Even better they could just hail a traditional ride and prevent showing up to their destination sweaty in exchange for a slight fare reduction. But, on the other hand, we’re looking at it more like it provides an opportunity for some much-needed exercise and it will reduce the amount of time ride-sharing EVs are drawing from the electric grid, ultimately reducing the amount of resources that go into keeping them going. Until we can harness the power of the sun and quit relying on dirty forms of electricity, this could help – on a world-wide scale – make the earth just a little bit greener.

But, what do you think? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

Autoguide0}

Read more Toyota news.

Read more technology news.

Read more electric car news.