Matthew has met with Steve McNamara, General Secretary of the Licensed Taxi Drivers’ Association (LTDA) in Westminster to test out the new, fully electric black cab.

The electric taxi – the ‘TX’ – hit London’s streets for the first time earlier this year, and already almost 100 are out picking up passengers. Matthew and Steve discussed the need to ensure that the charging infrastructure is in place to support these cabbies, and help more switch to the new vehicle.

The taxi trade is leading the charge in transitioning London’s transport network to be zero emission. However, drivers need to feel confident when buying the new taxi that widespread accessible, affordable and reliable rapid electric charging infrastructure is in place. For every minute a taxi driver is off the road, they are losing potential income.

Manufactured by the London Electric Vehicle Company in their factory in Coventry, the new electric black cab’s e-City technology allows for a range of up to 400 miles including up to 80 miles pure electric. Alongside its green credentials it has a panoramic sunroof, spacious seating for six passengers, enhanced accessibility features, in-vehicle charging and wi-fi.

Matthew said: “I’m grateful to the LTDA for letting me test out the new cab.

“This is a big leap forward for the taxi trade and we need to be doing all we can to support more drivers to make this change, and tackle the dangerous levels of air pollution in London.

“We must work to remove any barriers holding drivers back, including the lack of appropriate charging points”.