NYC's taxi fleet going green by 2012

[Linzyhop]

NYC's taxi fleet going green by 2012

By SARA KUGLER, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 50 minutes ago


The city's yellow taxi fleet will go entirely hybrid within five years, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced Tuesday.
"There's an awful lot of taxicabs on the streets of New York City," Bloomberg said. "These cars just sit there in traffic sometimes, belching fumes.
"This does a lot less. It's a lot better for all of us," he said of the hybrid plan.
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.
Hybrid vehicles run on a combination of gasoline and electricity, emitting less exhaust and achieving higher gas mileage per gallon.
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. Bloomberg made the announcement on NBC's "Today" show.
Hybrid vehicles are typically more expensive, but the city said the increase in fuel efficiency will save taxi operators more than $10,000 per year. Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO - news) said it would donate 10 hybrid Ford Escapes for the city's effort.
Shifting the taxi fleet to hybrids is part of Bloomberg's wider sustainability plan for the city, which includes a goal of a 30 percent reduction in carbon emissions by 2030.

well this is cool. i hope this is one thing that Boston will definitely follow suit on....

[Roonie]

They have no choice as gas prices continue to rise like we have seen the past couple of years or so. To make money it will force them to convert to more efficient cars rather than the 4.6L, gas guzzling 8 cylinder crown victoria's they use now. I think most major cities will follow soon.

[Nonphixion]

Hey, I love those crown vics!

And yes, they will be ALL gas-electric hybrids (as many of our MTA buses already are) by 2012

[thomez]

wonder why the Camry hybrid wasn't listed, it would be the closest hybrid to current Crown Vic (large sedan)

[DosEquis]

One thing I would question is the reliability of the hybrids vs. the crown vics. Though the hybrid should be more fuel efficient, if they break more often the costs could offset themselves, or may even cost more the run hybrids.

[David Octavius]

Originally Posted by DosEquis

One thing I would question is the reliability of the hybrids vs. the crown vics. Though the hybrid should be more fuel efficient, if they break more often the costs could offset themselves, or may even cost more the run hybrids.

If they are American Hybrids they probably will breakdown

[motivez]

This is pretty cool, but I have to wonder about the reliability long term and the negatives like battery replacement, etc..

I think the fact that they'll probably be driven so many miles per year probably negates some of the negatives of additional cost, I believe someone said you'd have to drive one 150k miles a year (or something around that) to really be getting the best bang for the buck by purchasing a Hybrid, but there's other benefits like emissions and such I suppose too

Anyone know if it will be mostly battery operated in stop and go traffic like NY?

[DosEquis]

Originally Posted by motivez

This is pretty cool, but I have to wonder about the reliability long term and the negatives like battery replacement, etc..

I think the fact that they'll probably be driven so many miles per year probably negates some of the negatives of additional cost, I believe someone said you'd have to drive one 150k miles a year (or something around that) to really be getting the best bang for the buck by purchasing a Hybrid, but there's other benefits like emissions and such I suppose too

Anyone know if it will be mostly battery operated in stop and go traffic like NY?

In theory it should be mostly electric since it is the stop and go traffic. I have read many times that they are not that great for interstate travel because the higher speeds requires more voltage, draining the battery quickly. So most of the time for the long term higher speed travel it is running on gas.

[AVengeance]

Originally Posted by DosEquis

One thing I would question is the reliability of the hybrids vs. the crown vics. Though the hybrid should be more fuel efficient, if they break more often the costs could offset themselves, or may even cost more the run hybrids.

More expensive battery packs, smaller vehicle (hey, the Vic is HUGE and bulletproof like the old Plymouth Fury).

ANY HYBRID introduces the complexity and cost of BOTH an electric car AND a gas or diesel car. When you do that, you have more things to break, more things to go wrong, and higher costs to repair.

All-electric cars would be great, but if they're not practical yet for that application, then they're just not.

[AVengeance]

Originally Posted by motivez

Anyone know if it will be mostly battery operated in stop and go traffic like NY?

The battery pack in a hybrid is typically pretty small. They're designed to "help" the car travel up a hill, or move around in a parking lot or a little rush-hour traffic. They aren't designed for extended use. The batteries would soon be depleted, and the gas engine would kick on to start recharging the batteries. Now you've got an electric car powered by a gas engine. Pretty stupid. Maybe as slow as traffic moves in NYC, they could just put solar panels on the roof? Oh wait, all those tall buildings- you're always in the shadows