GREEN MEANS GO
HYBRID TAXI IS THE FIRST ON THE ROADS OF BRECKLAND
Samantha and Wayne North, owners of 2 and Fro taxi firm in Swaffham, have become the first taxi drivers in the region to have a Toyota Prius licensed for carrying fare paying passengers. The Toyota Prius hybrid car is the newest addi- tion to the firm’s fleet, bringing a bounty of economical and envi- ronmental benefits. The firm, based in both Swaffham and Watton, started out in October 2008 and have a fleet of four vehicles.
The Prius began its run on the streets last month, but has already begun to turn heads, cut back on
petrol consumption and save money. “It’s a terrific drive and you can barely hear the engine. A lot of people have commented on our new addition,” Mr North said.
The hybrid uses a combination of fuel and a 12 volt battery located under the boot to run. The result is less greenhouse gas contribution.
Mr North plans to expand and introduce more hybrid vehicles into his fleet. According to Toyota, the car gets 100 kilo- metres for every 4.4 litres and uses 40 per cent less petrol than a
conventional engine. Anne Steward, Breck- land Council’s Executive member for the Environment, said she hopes to see more of the environmentally- friendly cars driving around the district soon. “Taxis are an important part of our public transportation system, and it’s great to see the start of more fuel- efficient cars in the district, which cut pol- lution by at least 40 per cent and save our taxi drivers a lot of money at the pumps. It’s cost efficient and environmentally friendly, so a real win- win situation.”
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PAGE 72
ELECTRIC CAR PILOT SCHEMES FOR NORTH EAST AND WEST MIDSLANDS
Electric cars will be on North East roads as part of a £10.6m green project.
The North East is one of eight UK regions to take part in trials, which will include electric taxis, a minibus and cars, the Government announced last month. A consortium including Nissan, Washington- based Smith Electric Vehicles, AVID Vehi- cles - based in Cramlington - Newcas- tle University and One North East, will now
put the plan into place. Chris Pywell, of One North East, told the Newcastle upon Tyne Evening Chronicle: “For the North East it is particularly impor- tant. It will increase the understanding of how electric vehicles will be used in the future, so cities around the world can develop the infrastructure based around our model.” Meanwhile, Electric cars could be a com- mon sight on the roads within five years
thanks to a major Gov- ernment pilot scheme involving manufactur- ers in Birmingham and Coventry, Transport Minister Lord Adonis has predicted.
The £25 million project, which includes Jaguar, Land Rover and Coven- try-based taxi manufacturer LTI will change the face of motoring, he said. The scheme “provides the ideal incentive to develop and demon- strate new technologies”.
GOING SOLO MAKES GOOD SENSE TO FIRM BASED IN OXFORD
Fed up with seeing cars and taxis carrying single pas- sengers, and leaving all the other seats empty, the owner of an Oxfordshire taxi firm has come up with a novel idea to help peo- ple nip about town - and leave a lighter car- bon footprint. George Raithby,
39,
who has run Thame Taxis for the past seven years, has introduced the Solocar to Oxford, a service he calls the Eco- Smart Travel Solution. The service, which began on May 1st, offers a low fuel-con- suming Smart Car and a uniformed driver to take you wherever you need to go, at a highly- competitive cost. Mr Raithby told the Oxford Times: “I have been thinking of intro- ducing this for a long time and it has taken
me three years to get the necessary licences. But now we have four Smart Cars positioned in strategic places in Oxford to be booked at short notice.”
Mr Raithby reckons that the Solocars offer a more environmentally- friendly service at lower cost. He said: “The fares are about 20 per cent cheaper than rivals. A trip to Heathrow from Oxford for instance is £48. It is a micro chauf- feur service where we can only take one pas-
senger at a time.” When dreaming up the idea, Mr Raithby made a study of customers who used Thame Taxis and came to the con- clusion that about 70 per cent of passen- gers travelled solo, leaving three seats in the taxi empty. He said that response to the Solocar so far had been good but he was really taking a ‘soft- ly, softly’ approach to the new business, con- centrating at the moment on marketing.
PHTM AUGUST 2009
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