HYBRID TAXIS NOT BUILT FOR COMMERCIAL USE

METROPOLITAN TAXICAB BOARD OF TRADE

Testimony of Ron Sherman, President of the Metropolitan Taxicab Board of Trade and Midtown Operating Corp. Before the City Council Transportation Committee, June 3, 2008

Good morning Mr. Chair and Members of the Committee. My name is Ron Sherman and I am President of Metropolitan Taxicab Board of Trade, the largest taxi fleet association in the United States with over 29 fleets and over 3500 yellow taxicabs.

On May 8 2008, the vast majority of the taxi industry including the two largest drivers groups, urged the Taxi and Limousine Commission to postpone the October 1st hybrid taxi mandate for reasons that included:

• lack of adequate safety testing on hybrids,
  
  
  
• unanswered worker safety questions,
  
  
  
• loss of vehicle features critical to safe, efficient and cost effective taxi service, and
  
  
  
• the obvious lack of availability, which I will address first.

Together, Ford and Toyota represent 97% of all current hybrid taxicabs. With 250 new hybrids needed each month to continue uninterrupted service to the riding public, the TLC could only offer up 50 Ford Escapes – 1/5th of the required number.

Toyota, the world’s largest manufacturer of hybrid cars, will not support any of its hybrids as New York City taxicabs. The company went on the record with the New York Times to say that their engineers are nervous about their hybrids being used as taxicabs because they were not built for commercial use. When Toyota expressly denounces an unintended use of its vehicle the City needs to listen – not simply push to make more cars available.

Clearly, there will not be enough to sustain this mandate. The numbers simply don’t add up. But these are just numbers. Now to the most important concern of all – vehicle safety and the protection of human life.

I have been operating a fleet of yellow taxicabs for 32 years. In my fleet alone, I am responsible for transporting more than 6 million human lives a year. The City is responsible for over 240 million taxi riders and tens of thousands of drivers – all of whom trust that the City has done everything possible to ensure their safety before entering my taxi or any taxi. I consider it a moral obligation to provide my drivers and passengers the safest possible vehicle and thank God, in 32 years, I have never had a driver or passenger killed in one of my taxicabs.

Crown Victorias are 5 star-across-the-board crash rated vehicles that withstand severe accidents, where drivers and passengers walk away and the vehicle is placed back in service the next day – sometimes by the next shift. I am specifically running what is called the Crown Victoria Long Wheel Base. The history of this “stretch” version of the Crown Vic is worth mentioning.

In the late 1990’s, the taxi commission was under fire for what many claimed was an increase in facial injuries occurring in taxi accidents when passengers hit the partition, which is required for driver protection. The campaign, led by a plastic surgeon at New York Cornell, was effective in that it helped to prompt Ford to stretch the vehicle and provide 6 extra inches of rear occupant space between the passenger and the partition. Since this additional 6 inches of rear seat occupant space appeared in the stretch Crown Vic in 2001 we haven’t heard from the plastic surgeons and the issue appears to have been remedied.

Today, the TLC is asking us to go back to 1998 – or perhaps much earlier – in mandating smaller, lighter, less roomy hybrid passenger cars like the Ford Escape which has a full 8.4 inches LESS legroom than the Crown Victoria LWB. Is it possible that the Escape may make a good taxi? To me, the science says “no”. However, the proper way to assess an adequate taxi is to entice owners to pilot them and give the industry a body of experience to work with. We don’t have that kind of experience with hybrids as 24/7 taxis over a significant period of time.

The TLC should understand this. They have taken numerous vehicles off their authorized list due to poor performance including the Honda Civic Hybrid; the Chevy Uplander and the Ford Freestar.

The fact is, the TLC has not performed any independent engineering analysis on authorizing passenger hybrid vehicles to be used as commercial taxicabs – a major policy change. The TLC has not performed any additional testing on hybrid taxicabs modified with partitions. The TLC refers to hybrids as “bridge” vehicles, not the ideal taxicab. The agency has spent $1 million on consultants charged with finding the “Taxi of Tomorrow,” designing specs and considering every last detail of what makes the perfect taxicab. I sit on that committee. It’s an important initiative, but surely the 240 million lives we move this year in these so-called bridge vehicles are just as important as the 240 million lives we will move in the taxi of tomorrow or those lives we move today.

The Crown Vic isn’t perfect. I would like the industry to identify a commercial taxicab that is big and heavy enough to withstand accidents and heavy usage, wheelchair accessible, and fuel efficient. We need to find the ideal taxicab –- and it may be just around the corner. Ford’s Transit Connect and the Standard Taxi meet these standards.

MTBOT hired an automotive safety expert and professional engineer to analyze hybrid models for use as taxicabs. The findings are more disturbing than any of us imagined. MTBOT has committed its resources to this effort because it is the single most important issue facing our passengers, our drivers and our businesses. We will continue to offer our resources to the City.

Today, however, the City Council must insist that this mandate be postponed at least 12 months so the vehicles can be properly tested by the City; so that owners and drivers can gain more experience with them and to allow new purpose-built, fuel efficient and wheelchair accessible vehicles to be introduced to the industry next summer. We cannot in good conscious allow the City to replace a fleet of proven, safe, reliable and comfortable taxicabs without pausing to rethink the wisdom of the October 1st mandate. Without immediate intervention, this mandate is a disaster in the making. Thank you.

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