Cuba's capital, Havana, is famous for its colorful vintage cars.
古巴首都哈瓦那以其色彩缤纷的老式汽车而闻名。
They fill the streets and are often popular subjects for visitors' photographs.
它们遍布街道,通常是游客拍照的热门对象。
But these days, Cubans are just as likely to be found traveling around town quickly and quietly on electric scooters made with Chinese parts.
但如今,人们很可能会发现,古巴人骑着用中国零部件制造的电动滑板车在城里快速而安静地穿行。
"Electric motorcycles are solving a lot of problems in Cuba, they are already used for almost everything," said Omar Cortina.
奥马尔·科尔蒂纳说:“电动摩托车正在解决古巴的许多问题,它们已经被用于几乎所有领域。”
He is a Cuban hotel worker who recently purchased his first electric vehicle -- a lime-green scooter powered by a lithium battery.
他是一名古巴酒店工作人员,最近购买了他的第一辆电动车——一辆由锂电池供电的淡绿色摩托车。
Until recently, Cuba's roads had changed little in the years since former leader Fidel Castro's 1959 revolution.
直到最近,自古巴前领导人菲德尔·卡斯特罗1959年的革命以来,古巴的道路几乎没有改变。
Old cars with old exhaust systems drove along uneven roads.
带有旧排气系统的旧车在不平的道路上行驶。
Today, electric vehicles are an increasingly common transportation choice.
如今,电动汽车是一种越来越常见的交通选择。
Between 2020 and 2022, Cuba-based companies produced more than 23,000 electric vehicles. That number comes from official government sources.
2020年至2022年期间,古巴公司生产了2.3万多辆电动汽车。这个数字来自政府官方消息来源。
Fuel for combustion-powered engines has been hard to find for years in Cuba.
多年来,古巴一直很难找到内燃机的燃料。
People would wait in fuel lines for hours and sometimes even days.
人们会在加油站排队等上几个小时,有时甚至几天。
Earlier this year, the price for gasoline increased to five times the usual price.
今年早些时候,汽油价格涨到了平时价格的5倍。
That means a usual 40-liter tank of gas costs more than a state-worker's average monthly earnings.
这意味着一箱普通的40升汽油的成本超过了一名政府工作人员的平均月收入。
For most Cubans, that made purchasing gasoline nearly impossible.
对于大多数古巴人来说,这使得购买汽油几乎不可能。
But costly fuel is not the only problem.
但昂贵的燃料并不是唯一的问题。
There are fewer buses in Havana than there were in the past.
哈瓦那的公交车比过去少了。
This year, half the bus routes to points outside the capital were cut, state-run news agencies in Cuba report.
据古巴国营通讯社报道,今年,通往首都以外地区的巴士路线有一半被切断。
Fuel and parts to repair old buses are also harder to find.
燃料和修理旧公共汽车的零件也更难找到。
All these factors have helped to increase the demand for electric vehicles.
所有这些因素都有助于增加对电动车的需求。
Products from newly formed companies like Caribbean Electric Vehicles (Vedca) are helping to fill that demand.
加勒比电动汽车公司(Vedca)等新成立公司的产品正在帮助满足这一需求。
Vedca is a joint venture between Chinese investor Tianjin Dongxing Industrial and Cuban state bicycle manufacturer Minerva.
加勒比电动汽车公司是中国投资者天津东兴工业与古巴国家自行车制造商Minerva的合资企业。
It has produced more than 2,000 scooters, bikes, and mini-tricycle trucks in Cuba with Chinese parts.
该公司已在古巴生产了2000多辆使用中国零部件的摩托车、自行车和小型三轮车。
Juilo Oscar Perez is the company's director.
朱利奥·奥斯卡·佩雷斯是该公司的董事。
Perez told reporters that electric vehicles are not just giving people another way of getting around.
佩雷斯告诉记者,电动汽车不仅仅为人们提供了另一种出行方式。
They are also solving fuel-related problems.
他们还在解决与燃料相关的问题。
The company, Perez said, has also begun testing a new electric tractor and experimenting with other electric-powered heavy machinery.
佩雷斯说,该公司还开始测试一款新型电动拖拉机与其他电动重型机械一起进行实验。
Other small Cuban companies also sell electric bikes.
其他一些小的古巴公司也销售电动自行车。
Some bikes are basic while others are more costly.
有些自行车是基础自行车,而另一些自行车则更贵。
The government also recently began permitting imports of much costlier electric vehicles.
政府最近还开始允许进口价格更高的电动汽车。
Imports of automobiles from the neighboring United States have risen to 24.6 million dollars so far in 2024, the U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council said.
美国-古巴贸易和经济委员会表示,到目前为止,2024年从邻国美国进口的汽车已增至2460万美元。
There is a growing number of Cubans who want more luxurious electric and hybrid automobiles, including Teslas.
越来越多的古巴人想要更豪华的电动和混合动力汽车,包括特斯拉。
But the number of Cubans who can pay for such vehicles is still small.
但能够支付此类车辆费用的古巴人数量仍然很少。
For Omar Cortina, the hotel worker, just being able to get back and forth from work is enough of a selling-point.