Nissan has shown off the design for its new black cab, which should begin crawling round the capital’s streets from next year.
The Nissan NV200 will serve as an alternative to the current vehicles, principally the TX4, manufactured by the London Taxi Company. Drivers might be tempted by the Japanese diesel vehicle’s superior miles per gallon and lower price point (at around £28,000, it will be £4,000 cheaper than the TX4), while Nissan boasts that their model will help cut carbon dioxide emissions in half.
The taxi sports twin sliding doors, a wheelchair ramp and a glazed roof, through which passengers will be able to observe London’s leaden skies. Nissan also hopes to release an electric version of the taxi in 2014; Boris Johnson has previously promised that all London taxis will be electric by 2020. Autocar has more on the technical specifications.
Design-wise, the new taxi is disappointing: it’s basically a nondescript van with the distinctive orange lamp affixed front and centre. Something about it must appeal to municipal leaders, though — last year Nissan won the licence to supply all of New York’s yellow taxis using a similar model.
Here’s a video of the taxi in action:
