Melbourne’s taxi industry is getting some competition with the arrival of the first iconic London cab in the city as it begins its trial this week.
The Herald Sun reports, Melbourne’s Taxi Services Commission has approved the use of the London cab in Victoria and now the London Taxi Company Australia will be taking its car around the city to evaluate its services.
“We’ve got a vehicle we need to evaluate and it is very exciting,” Evan Simeon, CEO of the London Taxi Company Australia, told radio 3AW. “We’d like to trial at least 100 here in Victoria as a sample patch and then work from that.”
However, rather than the traditional black paint, the speciality Australian fleet is painted white as part of a “hot condition package” which also includes an upgraded radiator, air-conditioning and a larger battery.
“They fit one driver plus five passengers in the rear in a separate compartment that is separated from the driver with a security barrier,” said Mr Simeon. He added that the cost of using the iconic cab will be the same as other taxis, but with “limousine service.”
The introduction of the London taxi fleet to Melbourne follows a “very encouraging” trial in Perth, where about 100 cabs travelled three and a half million kilometres and carried over 60,000 passengers.
Of those passengers, Mr Simeon said 95 per cent claim they would book a London taxi again. “Seventy-five per cent are saying the will wait longer for a London taxi over a conventional sedan because it is a purpose built taxi,” he added.
