As most New Yorkers do, I love New York City, but, I also find it fascinating to visit other cities and discover similarities and gaps compared with New York. Many of these experiences allow me to gain a fresh perspective on the various issues of urban living.
Last week, I had one of these experiences when I visited Boston for a conference. Boston
welcomed me with a small surprise at Logan Airport. As I was about to take a taxi downtown, I noticed a car with green and earth-brown strips. I looked closer at the green strip and saw a logo: Boston’s Clean Air CABS.
- Boston’s CleanAir Cab
Little did I know that Boston launched the CleanAir Cabs program in April 2007. The taxi picked me up at the airport was a program participant and Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV).
Have you seen the color of NYC’s new taxi for the boroughs around anhattan? The new taxi was finally unveiled in April by Mayor Bloomberg. What color does it look like to you? Lime? Pistachio? Bloomberg called it “apple green.” Is the new cab really that green?
- New York City’s new cab (Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times)
The color of the new taxi was kept a secret until the last minute, so it could be hyped up by the media. However, no particular regulatory changes for taxis were announced at the unveiling. Bloomberg had set a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 30 % by 2030, which is considered to be an integral part of the 2007 PlaNYC, an economic and environmental initiative to prepare the city for one million more residents. Somewhat surprisingly, however, greenhouse gas emission reduction not reflected at the unveiling.
In fact, NYC along with other cities, has gone through much debate about the deployment of hybrid taxis.
In September 2008 a group of taxi operators sued the city claiming that hybrids were not suitable for city taxis and in October of the same year, a federal judge blocked New York City from implementing the fuel economy requirement. There was another battle in 2009 between the city government and taxi operators.
We have seen a similar battle in Boston. A group of taxi drivers and medallion owners sued in federal court for the city of Boston to block the requirement and requested the city delay the changeover for two or three years.
This is a complex issue. Do you know how much it costs to get a taxi medallion in NYC? It is $400,000 per medallion. Medallion owners, therefore, need to make money as soon as they hit the road. NYC’s cab drivers do not make a lot of money. The Taxi and Limousine Commission estimates that drivers earn an average of $130 a day, down from $150 in 2006. NYC’s cab drivers claim that hybrid cars are not sufficient to handle the city that never sleeps: a car requires a 24 hours-drive capability to enable a return on investment.
As a small business owner, I totally understand the rationale of taxi drivers and medallion owners against the regulations. On the other hand, I would like to see a more creative way to entice businesses to participate in the conversion.
Looking at Boston’s better success with hybrid, I see the CleanAir Cabs program was created around the benefits for cab drivers. First, the operating cost savings for drivers are great as hybrid taxi cabs can get up to three times as many miles per gallon of fuel as the old Crown Victoria cabs. Second, hybrid taxi drivers get two “front of the line” passes per shift at Logan Airport, allowing them to make two extra trips daily and gain more earning opportunities.
I believe that regulators’ involvement in sustainability needs to be well designed and in balance. We do not want to lose employment to keep the earth green. That is just not realistic. I believe in creating a space for all of us to “participate” rather than enforcing rules that would be only used as a measurement for regulators’ success.
What do you think of the NYC cab driver’s situation? What would you do if you were Bloomberg?
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