Council employee not allowed charge electric bike

LIMERICK city firefighter Marty Mannering owns the country’s only full-speed electric motorbike — but his employers have refused to allow him to charge the bike at work.

The Vetrix bike, which goes up to 70km/h, can be charged through a normal three-pin 240v socket and costs just 11 cent to charge for 24 hours — less than the cost of charging a laptop.

However, Limerick City Council has refused to allow Mr Mannering, who has worked at the station for nine years, park the bike in the firestation alongside other motorbikes or to use an adjacent power source.

Over the next 10 years, Limerick City Council will play an important role in ensuring that the city meets the Department of Transport’s targets of having 10% of the country’s vehicles electric. When asked by the Irish Examiner what their opposition was to the electric bike, a spokesman for Limerick City Council said that it was an “internal employee-employer issue” and that it would not comment.

An email to Mr Mannering from the director of services in the council’s environment department stated “we are unable to accommodate this request” but failed to give any reason for the refusal.

Mr Mannering has spent 18 months seeking permission to charge up the bike.

He says he does not need to charge the bike at his workplace everyday as he lives in Cappamore, just 24km from his workplace on Mulgrave Street. The Vetrix motorbike will run for up to 96km without being recharged.

“Obviously, I just need the peace of mind of knowing that I can charge it, if needs be,” he said.