Mayor Bloomberg is proposing that the entire yellow cab fleet of New York City go hybrid by 2012. This would be a great move towards clearing the city's air and reducing our carbon footprint. According to an Associated Press story,
Nearly 400 fuel-efficient hybrids have been tested in the city's taxi fleet over the past 18 months, with models including the Toyota Prius, the Toyota Highlander Hybrid, the Lexus RX 400h and the Ford Escape.
Under Bloomberg's plan, that number will increase to 1,000 by October 2008, then will grow by about 20 percent each year until 2012, when every yellow cab -- currently numbering 13,000 -- will be a hybrid.
The standard yellow cab vehicle, the Ford Crown Victoria, gets 14 miles per gallon. In contrast, the Ford Escape taxis get 36 miles per gallon. In addition to making the yellow cab brigade entirely green within five years, the city will require all new vehicles entering the fleet after October 2008 to achieve a minimum of 25 miles per gallon. A year later, all new vehicles must get 30 miles per gallon and be hybrid.
The Taxi and Limousine Commission has to approve the plan for it to happen, but signs are positive. As Ray Rivera reports in today's edition of The New York Times, TLC chair Matthew W. Daus seems to endorse the change, saying that even with higher maintenance costs for the hybrids (which are a bit less durable on city streets than the typical Crown Victoria model taxi), "when you add it all up, with the gas savings, it’s going to mean more money in the drivers’ pockets."
