It looks like New York’s famed yellow taxi fleet will be getting a makeover, thanks to the Ford Motor Company. The Dearborn, Michigan-based car manufacturer announced that they will be increasing the number of “green” taxi in the Big Apple. This came after New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced the plan to increase the number of hybrid taxis in the city to 1,000 units by October next year. The plan aims to increase the number of hybrid taxis by 20 percent until the year 2012. By that time, if the plan materializes, the entire fleet of New York taxis will all be hybrid cars.
In a statement made by Ford’s North American Fleet, Lease and Remarketing Organization Director John Felice, he pointed out that the company is in a position to turn that plan to reality. “Ford was the first company with a hybrid taxi on the streets of New York City, and we’re proud that three-quarters of the city’s hybrid fleet is the Ford Escape Hybrid,” said Felice. “We look forward to working with Mayor Bloomberg and city officials on their future taxi plans,” he added.
What the company is looking to introduce to the city’s taxi fleet is the Ford Escape Hybrid. Currently, the city employs 18 Ford Escape Hybrid units. Combined, these green vehicles have already saved about $250,000 worth of fuel. Imagine how much the city can save with hundreds of these hybrids around. Matthew W. Daus, the New York City Taxi and Limousine commissioner, pointed out one of the advantages of using a totally green fleet saying: “We expect these new standards will save 22 million gallons of fuel in the first year, and that is only the beginning of what we will be able to accomplish.”
While hybrid vehicles cost more than vehicles equipped with conventional gasoline engines, in the long run, taxi operators will save more with these green cars. Not only will they save a lot of money on fuel consumption but they will also be doing their part in protecting the environment for the future generation.
