The Taxi of Tomorrow is getting into a street fight as the city moves to make half of the yellow cab fleet wheelchair accessible.
Mobility Ventures, the company behind the wheelchair-accessible MV-1 car, is hoping to entice cab buyers away from the Taxi of Tomorrow by slashing the price of its vehicle, which will be announced Monday, the Daily News has learned.
Advocates for the disabled have criticized the Taxi of Tomorrow, which has to be retrofitted with a chair ramp costing the buyer $14,000.
The car, made by Nissan, requires people in wheelchairs to go out into the street to board from the rear. Another design flaw for activists is the cramped backseat that makes securing a wheelchair difficult for drivers.
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“It’s not desirable by wheelchair and scooter users,” said Jim Weisman, president of the United Spinal Association.
“They’re stocking up on the wrong vehicle,” he added.
The MV1 maker plans to cut the price down to $33,000, from $39,000.
Coupled with a $14,000 rebate from the Taxi and Limousine Commission to get more accessible cabs on the road, the price drops to $19,000.
That is $10,000 cheaper than the Taxi of Tomorrow, which will cost cab buyers nearly $30,000 after the TLC covers the cost of retrofitting the vehicle with a lift, according to the agency.
Pat Kemp, an executive at MV1, said in a statement that the price cut makes the cab the “best choice for taxi drivers and fleet owners now making the switch to a wheelchair accessible vehicle.”
But Nissan in a statement defended the Taxi of Tomorrow, saying the design is the result of extensive outreach to the cab industry and riders.
“Nissan’s NV200 Taxi is New York City’s only approved non-hybrid taxi and it reflects the input of hundreds of taxi owners and drivers, and thousands of passengers from all walks of life,” Nissan said in the statement. “Nissan understands and respects the concerns presented by disability advocates and the NV200 Taxi is designed so that it can be modified for wheelchair users.”
TLC spokesman Allan Fromberg said the agency is just pleased that there’s competition to get more accessible cars on the road.
“The TLC welcomes and appreciates all efforts by the private sector to support greater wheelchair accessibility in New York City’s taxi fleet,” he said.
Half of the yellow cab fleet, or more than 7,500 cars, must be wheelchair accessible by 2020 under a settlement between the administration of Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the United Spinal Association.
