32 charge points for Nottingham’s electric taxis

Nottingham City Council has been awarded £702,000 from the government’s Office of Low Emissions Vehicles to install 32 electric vehicle charge points for the city’s electric and hybrid taxis.

This is part of Nottingham City Council’s Taxi Strategy to modernise the taxi fleet and improve the customer offer, not just around comfort and safety, but also around the environmental impact of taxi emissions.

As well as environmental improvements, taxi vehicles will be re-branded, drivers will be trained in customer service and provided uniforms. The council is also looking into developing an Uber-style app for hackney cabs.

The electric vehicle charge points will be installed at eight locations around the city from early next year.

These charging points are on top of 230 points that will be for public as well as taxi use, which the council has received £2m of separate Government funding for.

Portfolio Holder for Community and Customer Services, Cllr Toby Neal, said: “This is the beginning of a new dawn for taxi services in Nottingham. We have a world-class public transport network, with arguably the best bus and tram services in the country, and these improvements will bring local taxi services up to the same high standard. We are removing any barriers that might prevent taxis from becoming greener, by installing a network of charging points and making arrangements so that getting a new lower-emission vehicle is affordable.

“In the next few years, we will see the fleet of hackney cabs transformed to clean, modern re-branded vehicles and uniformed drivers fully trained in customer service. We also intend to bring out an Uber-style app for hackneys so that it is an appealing, customer-focused service for modern-day passengers.”