Eco-friendly taxi service greentomatocars have completed a
deal with Chinese manufacturer BYD that will see them receive 50 of their pure
electric e6 vehicles to trial within the city of London.
The company currently use hybrid and biodiesel vehicles for
their fleet and consider themselves instrumental in popularising the Toyota
Prius when the company launched in 2006. Their dedication to providing a
low-carbon source of transport is at the heart of what the company hopes to
achieve.
The deal with BYD will be the first time that all electric
vehicles have been used as a taxi service within the capital. The cars
themselves boast top speeds of 87mph and a charge distance of 186 miles, which
makes it perfect for urban taxi fleets. The deal also sees a significant
expansion of the 300-strong low-emission fleet that they currently run.
Greentomatocars are hoping that by using the new e6 models they
will help popularise fully-electric vehicles within urban environments, much as
they encouraged the use of eco-friendly hybrid cars.
London Mayor Boris Johnson has applauded the deal. The Tory’s plan
to have all taxis and minicabs emission-free by 2020 seems to be heading in the
right direction. "Every year [London's]
fleet is getting cleaner, making our city an even more attractive place to
live, work and visit," Johnson said in a statement, "Encouraging many
more electric vehicles is a key part of this transformation, so it is great
news that greentomatocars has committed to operating 50 of these super clean
machines from next year."
A similar programme is being implemented in the
USA aswell. The Nissan Leaf was the vehicle of choice to be tested as an
all-electric taxi alternative in New York and Mexico City, with tests in Virginia
coming up.
The popularity for an all-electric vehicle for
every day and family use is not high due to a number of reasons that mostly
focus on the short charge distance that most vehicles possess. However, it
seems that the urban taxi environment is a perfect fit for electric vehicles,
where long journeys are not expected to occur. Developments in the battery-life
and motor power of electric vehicles are also making their use far more
feasible.
The e6 model used by greentomatocars will be
available in the second quarter of 2013.
1 comments:
Glad to see this eco-friendly taxi and besides it is really good for taxi service and for sure people will enjoy ride in this taxi.
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