Just yesterday, we reported that one of the finalists for New York’s Taxi of Tomorrow, the V1 model by Turkish automaker Karsan, would be built in Brooklyn, creating up to 800 local jobs. Unfortunately, the good news was short lived. The Taxi and Limousine Commission has rejected the model, based on a study that found that the design was too high risk. The New York Times reports that “a review raised concerns about whether the Turkish company, untested in the American market, could reliably execute the high-concept product it had designed.” This leaves the Ford Transit Connect and the Nissan NV200 as possible choices. Mayor Bloomberg is expected to announce the winner sometime this week.
The news is a bit disheartening considering that the Karsan was the people’s choice, the only design with wheelchair access, and the only model that would have been made in the United States. Officials have called the Ford Transit Connect “uninspired” and have criticized it for only getting 21 miles per gallon. The Nissan model looks a little more spacious, but it does not have wheelchair access. Neither would be made in the States.
In a statement, Karsan said that it was unaware of the report, which was released prematurely. The city would not comment on the report, but last Friday, Bloomberg hinted at the issues during his radio show when he said, “You’ve got to look at how much experience companies have had in building cars.”
After this decision, they should not complain that jobs moving overseas…
Why can’t the taxi industry use whatever car they want as their taxi fleet.
Theirs an article I’ve read before that says the taxi could reduce fleets fuel efficiency. It’s not our fault. It’s Bloomberg’s fault. Never fully trust government to assess a situation. Why is the government picking and choosing over vehicles that obviously won’t save money. We know ethanol is a scam. Yet they have thousands of E85 vehicles on subsidized fuel prices and then they claim they save fuel and money. They can save a lot of money by trading in all those Chevy Tahoe’s for Chevy Equinox’ or better yet drive a Focus or Ford Fusion. Stop buying Prius’s, They get 48 mpg highway; while a Ford Focus gets 40 mpg highway but is Seven-thousand dollars cheaper than the Prius. That much money will save enough gas to drive around the world over 2 times. On a cost per gallon of fuel or per mile basis, the Focus is better than the Prius. Yet only the hybrid lands you a 7,500 dollar tax credit. Trade in those Crown Vic’s for Ford Focus or Ford Edge’s.