Pollen is building the battery-swapping network electric motorcycles have been waiting for

Pollen's universal battery platform is designed to cut charging times to seconds while working across multiple motorcycle brands. Mobility Pollen is building the battery-swapping network electric motorcycles have been waiting for Pollen's universal battery platform is designed to cut charging times to seconds while working across multiple motorcycle brands. Cate Lawrence 2 hours ago Share Share Send email Copy link Urban mobility is increasingly shifting toward electrification as cities aim to reduce emissions and improve air quality.

However, while more than 60 per cent of new passenger cars sold in the EU were electrified - hybrid, plug-in hybrid or battery-electric - fewer than 6 per cent of new motorcycles sold last year were electric. Rui Bento, co-founder and CEO of the Lisbon startup Pollen , attributes this to several factors. Electric motorcycles are still more expensive than petrol models because batteries account for a much larger share of the vehicle's overall cost.

"In a car, you can spread that battery cost across a much larger vehicle while also eliminating many mechanical components. Motorcycles simply don't have that advantage. " The second issue is charging.