Electric taxi service launched in London
Tue 11 February 2014
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Twenty electric vehicles built by China's BYD motors are now available for private hire on London's streets. London's first fleet of electric taxis comes into operation ahead of the 2018 deadline Mayor Boris Johnson has set for all new cabs to produce zero emissions.
The Mayor’s office says taxis account for around a third of all the exhaust emissions in London. The vehicles will be run by chauffeur service Thriev. They can travel 186 miles on a single charge and Thriev plans to install charging points provided by British Gas at its Edgware Road site.
The introduction of the fleet of 20 BYD e6 models follows the roll-out of 2 BYD ebuses operated by Transport for London and the Go-Ahead Group at the end of 2013.
AutoCar reports that London mayor Boris Johnson has unveiled plans to replace the current fleet of 22,000 diesel-powered black cabs with new EV and petrol range-extended designs, one of which is the Nissan NV200, to appear from the end of this year. An all-electric version will follow in 2015 and the NV200 will be built in Coventry.
According to City AM Chinese manufacturer BYD is 9.9 per cent owned by US investor Warren Buffett. The company is a major rechargeable battery producer, also operating in mobile phones and keypads.
A 50 vehicle deal between BYD and mini-cab company Green Tomato Cars has reportedly fallen through, after a Memoradum of Understanding was signed in 2012.
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