London taxi giant Addison Lee has pledged to make its fleet of cabs fully electric by 2023.
The company revealed that it is investing £160 million in the initiative, which will see the complete electric conversion of its 4,800-strong fleet a whole two years ahead of any other large PHV operator in London.
Once completed, Addison Lee’s all-electric initiative will mean an estimated 20 000 zero emissions journeys each day in the UK capital.
According to a company press release, that process will commence with a partnership with Volkswagen that will see the adoption of the German auto manufacturer’s all-electric ID.4 SUV, which will represent “the largest UK purchase of electric vehicles (EV) by a private hire provider”.
In fact, Addison Lee has already taken a huge step towards the electrification of its fleet with the purchase of leading black taxi platform ComCab. This has added 650 zero-emission vehicles into its fleet in one move.
The company plans to invest £3.5 million in charging infrastructure for its drivers, which is sorely needed given that there are only a little over 300 rapid chargers in London at present.
Rival Uber made its own pledge back in 2017, but with a target date of 2025. Two years later, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan set out a strategy to for all car fleets in the capital to operate zero emission vehicles by 2025.