Hybrid Taxis Unsafe, Report Says, Day After Cab Cos. Sue NYC for Requiring Them

Hybrid Taxis Unsafe, Report Says, Day After Cab Cos. Sue NYC for Requiring Them

By Scott Doggett, Contributor

A new report by an automotive engineer allegedly exposes the many dangers of riding in New York City's hybrid yellow taxicabs.

By law, NYC fleet operators can use a vehicle as a taxi for three years before it must be replaced. Starting Oct. 1, the new cabs will have to be one of eight approved hybrids.

The move is intended to improve Manhattan's air quality. About 3,000 of the 13,000 NYC yellow taxis and roughly 2,200 of the 10,000 black taxis are replaced annually.

The report by C. Bruce Gambardella, which was paid for by the Metropolitan Taxicab Board of Trade, the country's largest taxi fleet association, concludes that hybrids are not designed to hold partitions.

Partitions are mandated by the city's Taxi and Limousine Commission to prevent drivers from being assaulted, robbed and/or killed. Gambardella claims partitions in hybrid taxis block side-curtain airbags from deploying, become easily dislodged in accidents and "restrict drivers from safely distancing themselves from front airbags."

Gambardella further alleges that partitions diminish backseat legroom so severely that "even belted passengers will hit their faces on the hard, unyielding surface of the partition in an accident."

On Monday, the taxi fleet association sued the city, urging that the Oct. 1 mandate be annulled.

The lawsuit maintains that the mandate will cause irreparable harm to taxi passengers and drivers. It also argues that the city's mandate failed to follow its own long-standing procedures requiring safety testing and a pilot program prior to the mandate of new vehicles.

The lawsuit further argues that the city's mandate is preempted by the federal Energy Policy and Conservation Act as well as the federal Clean Air Act.

A spokeswoman for the city's legal department declined to comment on the suit, saying that city lawyers had not yet received the legal papers. The Taxi and Limousine Commission has previously said that it is confident that the hybrid cabs are safe.

The plan to improve the fuel efficiency of the taxis was envisioned as part of Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's PlaNYC 2030, a comprehensive set of 127 initiatives aimed at reducing New York's carbon emissions and meeting the challenges of the city's growing population.

Scott Doggett:  is an AutoObserver.com Associate Editor.