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”.
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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.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
