Lisa Chow
Lisa Chow is the economics reporter at WNYC. She tries to explore in her stories surprising aspects of New York’s many economies—in plain view or hidden, in neighborhoods or sectors.
Mayor Aims for Hybrid Taxi Fleet
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
New York, NY –
As part of his plan to tackle climate change, Mayor Bloomberg wants to replace all 13,000 taxicabs with more fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles in the next 5 years. The New York Taxi Workers Alliance says drivers will feel the costs. WNYC's Lisa Chow reports.
REPORTER: The mayor says hybrid taxis are a win-win. They're good for the environment and they'll save cab drivers $10,000 a year in fuel costs. The executive director of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance Bhairavi Desai disagrees. She says any savings the drivers make, they'll be paying in higher leasing fees to the owners of the cars or the garages. In other words, she says, drivers don't win from this plan.
DESAI: It should be about an economic equity as well as an environmental justice. In the taxi industry, in order for that to happen, we need to protect drivers from bearing the costs of the vehicles.
REPORTER: The mayor said the city will not help cab drivers purchase the more expensive hybrid cars, that he'd rather reduce taxpayers bills than send more money to private groups. For WNYC, I'm Lisa Chow.
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