German Taxi Operator Plans To Add 50 Tesla Model 3s To Its Fleet
One of the perks of owning an electric vehicle is that you don’t have to buy gas. Taxi Norman, out of Dusseldorf in Germany, knows this and has already put into service a couple of Tesla Model S vehicles. The company is now planning to add 50 Tesla Model 3s to its fleet.
Many people who use Uber or Lyft never really consider taxis, but every major city in the world has a n extensive taxi network — often numerous independent operators. German cities have many small operators.
Teslas — the first electric taxis in Düsseldorf https://t.co/Rut5SwveTv via @rponline
— Zachary Shahan (@zshahan3) January 5, 2020
Taxi Norman believes that switching from diesel vehicles to electric vehicles will not only be environmentally friendly, but also profitable. One of their older vehicles costs around 6,000 euros per year in gas and maintenance. A Tesla would only cost around 35 euros per vehicle per month (420 euros per year).
Taxi Norman currently has approximately 150 vehicles, only 2 of them being Tesla Model Ss. The 50 Tesla Model 3s planned for purchase should each cost around 45,000 euros.
“The car has only been driving this morning, and the driver has already received a tip of 15 euros because the customer simply thought it was great to drive in an electronic car.” — Erol Norman, Managing Director, Taxi Norman
The fact that Taxi Norman, in German auto country, is integrating electric vehicles into its fleet from an American car company is a strong message to legacy automakers. It is essentially a demand that they need to wake up before they no longer have a spot in this new auto world — an all-electric one.
As of 2012, there were around 233,900 taxi drivers in the United States. This number is no doubt much higher if you include Uber and Lyft drivers as well. Imagine if every taxi company in the United States added 4 Teslas or other electric vehicles to its fleet. Imagine them replacing their entire fleet and going completely electric. I believe that by the time 2029 rolls around, this will either have happened or be happening.
Tens of thousands of Teslas could be sold each year in the US just for use in taxi services. However, the more important thing is that taxis drive a lot of miles and spend a lot of time idling. So, a Tesla taxi cuts a lot more pollution than a Tesla used as a normal consumer car.
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