Photo: mariordo59 via Flickr
Taxi companies in densely populated areas should be the prime clientele of EVs once their acquisition price drops to a level comparable to similar cars powered by conventional engines.
And, in most parts of the world, that time is now. EVs used to be either too expensive or too small to function as taxis, but the Nissan LEAF changed that when it first launched in 2010. However, it took nearly three years before the first taxi company decided to sell its current fleet and buy an all-electric one.
It happened in Japan first, but the idea spread to all four corners of the world quickly enough. Right now, there are countless taxi companies in Europe, Central and North America, and even the Middle East who operate fleets of electric Nissan LEAFs (or is it LEAVES?) or e-NV200 minivans.
In spite of the still restricted maximum range - especially so for the now old LEAF - using EVs for taxi activities actually makes sense. It cuts short a lot of expenses like car maintenance and the cost per mile is also significantly lower than in a fossil-fuel-powered vehicle.
The only downside is the time spent replenishing the battery, but once fast charging becomes a reality, a half-an-hour break every 200 miles or so wouldn't be such a big issue.
Since they operate within city limits, range anxiety is a thing of the past since you're always within a few miles tops from a charging station, while the health benefits for everyone around - regarding both emissions and sound pollution - would be tremendous, even though a little trickier to quantify.
Right now, Nissan has over 2,000 electric taxis worldwide, with 1,200 of them buzzing on the streets of Europe. Since the current LEAF approaching the end of its lifecycle, Nissan is keener than ever to sell the EV, meaning discounted prices aren't a rare occurrence. That means more cheap electric taxis for everyone interested who, for some reason, can't wait for the next generation of EVs with improved range and affordable prices (we're talking Chevy Bolt, Tesla Model 3 or even the new LEAF).
It happened in Japan first, but the idea spread to all four corners of the world quickly enough. Right now, there are countless taxi companies in Europe, Central and North America, and even the Middle East who operate fleets of electric Nissan LEAFs (or is it LEAVES?) or e-NV200 minivans.
In spite of the still restricted maximum range - especially so for the now old LEAF - using EVs for taxi activities actually makes sense. It cuts short a lot of expenses like car maintenance and the cost per mile is also significantly lower than in a fossil-fuel-powered vehicle.
The only downside is the time spent replenishing the battery, but once fast charging becomes a reality, a half-an-hour break every 200 miles or so wouldn't be such a big issue.
Since they operate within city limits, range anxiety is a thing of the past since you're always within a few miles tops from a charging station, while the health benefits for everyone around - regarding both emissions and sound pollution - would be tremendous, even though a little trickier to quantify.
Right now, Nissan has over 2,000 electric taxis worldwide, with 1,200 of them buzzing on the streets of Europe. Since the current LEAF approaching the end of its lifecycle, Nissan is keener than ever to sell the EV, meaning discounted prices aren't a rare occurrence. That means more cheap electric taxis for everyone interested who, for some reason, can't wait for the next generation of EVs with improved range and affordable prices (we're talking Chevy Bolt, Tesla Model 3 or even the new LEAF).
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