New York City will be getting a brand new fleet of Electric Vehicle taxis comprised of Ford Mustangs and outside the U.S.a lot sooner, but that doesn't mean cities like New York won't be catching up any time soon.
New York is famous for its yellow medallion cabs that can take engers anywhere within its five boroughs. However, those who want to be picked up in New York's outer boroughs have to hail one of its green 'boro' taxis. Now, it seems like ride-hailing start-up Gravity is hoping to double-down on those by deploying even greener green taxis, utilizing some of the most cutting-edge EV tech on the market.
Gravity is planning on launching at least 50 EV taxis onto the streets of New York City, according to Businesswire. These taxis will be comprised entirely out of Ford Mustang Mach E and Tesla Model Ys, all of which will be outfitted with the company's own tech enhancements. This includes a touch display for enger entertainment, as well as artificial intelligence tech that monitors the driver to ensure a safe trip. Gravity CEO Moshe Cohen claims that their EV taxis are designed to be "the smartest, safest and most sustainable taxi to ever hit the road." The company already launched its first batch of Mustang Mach E taxis onto New York City streets, with its Tesla Model Y cabs to follow shortly once final inspections are completed.
What To Expect From Gravity's EV Taxis
The transportation industry is constantly trying to reinvent the wheel in various ways, and Gravity's approach is no different. Aside from leading taxis towards a zero-emission future, the company also promises to deploy some of the safest cabs on the market, using its driver-monitoring AI that checks and reminds drivers if they're feeling tired, distracted or even if their masks are off. It also comes with night-vision cameras and semi-autonomous features that assist drivers with blind spots, breaking and warning them of potential collisions.
As for the engers, they will be treated to a 22-inch touch screen that offers climate controls, music playback, video entertainment and even selfie-snapping, with each EV taxi coming with panoramic roofs as a standard for easy city-viewing. Aside from having more features than the average cab, Gravity taxis still follow standard New York City yellow cab rates and can be hailed either via its app or straight from the streets. So while it might not sound as futuristic as other emerging concepts, Gravity's big bet on EVs that provide various conveniences for drivers and engers does seem like a more feasible and practical next step in the ride-hailing industry and without the unemployment risks of going full-autonomous too.
Sources: Businesswire, Gravity