Back in early 2005, San Francisco chose the Escape Hybrid as a replacement vehicle for some ailing older cabs. Shortly thereafter, New York did the same and purchased a small fleet of Escape Hybrids. By June of 206, Ford started a nationwide promotional tour highlighting the advantages of the Escape and Mariner Hybrid as a taxi. Since then, Chicago and Austin have done the same. At this point in time, New York has 288 Escape Hybrids on the taxi fleet and the results have been very impressive. The initial fleet consisted of 18 Escapes and the estimated fuel savings hover around $250,000. The extra 270 should create an impressively large mountain of savings. Here are a few statistics concerning the Escape Hybrid as a Taxi: * Through 100,000 miles (160,000 km), an Escape Hybrid taxi will save roughly 1,666 gallons (6,307 litres) of gas or 32,000 lbs. of carbon emissions compared with a conventional cab. * New York City Cabs have accumulated over 175,000 miles (280,000 km) with no major mechanical problems, proving that the Escape Hybrid is reliable and durable. * Escape Hybrid taxi drivers report they expect to save over $6,000 on gas per year. On top of all of these advantages, Hybrid drivers can anticipate Federal income tax credits and insurance discounts of up to 10 percent on certain coverage. All of this is excellent news for Ford, the Taxi business and the environment. Source: Auto123.com
Have they changed the design, where the a/c can run on it's own (like the Prius) or does the ICE still have to run when the a/c is on? If not I think that would be a big negative for using it as a taxi.
Chicago's first hybrid taxi won't hit the road until next month and I'm not sure what model it is. There was an article in the Trib today about how two aldermen here want to follow NYC's lead and get more hybrid taxis on the road. Of course, some old-school cabbie chimed in and said, "You got to realistically check and see, can it hold up under the stress?" So, I politely emailed the editor this morning along with the two aldermen about the Canadian Prius Taxi driver and linked to his blog. The editor actually emailed me a thank you back so see where it goes.
