Yellow Cabs Go Green

Click on the artist's rendition of a New York City cab above or the Reuters link for the full article.

By Edith Honan

NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York City's famed yellow taxi cabs will go green within five years under a plan that could serve as a model for other large cities, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced on Tuesday.

He said 1,000 hybrid taxis -- powered by gasoline and electricity -- would be introduced by October 2008, and that hybrids would gradually replace the rest of the city's 13,000 taxi cabs by 2012.

New York already has 375 hybrid taxis on the road, more than any other U.S. city, Bloomberg said.

"It will be the largest, cleanest fleet of taxis anywhere on the planet," Bloomberg said.

"And because taxis are so heavily used, the new standard will have the equivalent effect of removing 30,000 individually-owned gas-powered vehicles from our streets."

Hybrid vehicles are powered by a combination of gasoline and electricity, and they emit less exhaust and have better gas mileage than other vehicles. The plan, which is based on new mileage and emission standards for cabs, will reduce the carbon emissions of New York City's fleet by 50 percent during the next decade, Bloomberg said.

While hybrid cars are generally more expensive, Bloomberg said the plan would save cab drivers more than $10,000...per year in gasoline and other expenses.