London Black Cabs Seek Their Own Brexit With Paris Calling
- Electric version of classic London cab to hit Paris in 2018
- London Taxi to have gasoline-powered generator to extend range
A TX5 London taxi made by Chinese company Geely.
Photographer: Adrian Dennis/AFP/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
London’s iconic black cabs aren’t waiting for the U.K.’s vote on European Union membership, seeking their own Brexit by pitching an electric version for Paris and other major European cities.
London Taxi Co., which manufactures most of the city’s cabs, showed the TX5 prototype in Paris on Thursday. The car is powered by electric motors with an on-board gasoline-fueled generator for extra range. The goal is to offer the vehicle to cabbies in the French capital by 2018 and then expand to cities such as Barcelona, Oslo, Amsterdam and Berlin.