Testimony Before the New York City Council Committee on Transportation Hearing on Clean Air Taxis
Tuesday, June 3, 2008

My name is Micah Z. Kellner and I represent the 65th Assembly District in Manhattan, including parts of the Upper Ease Side, Yorkville, and Roosevelt Island. Thank you to Chairman Liu and Council Speaker Christine Quinn for the opportunity to testify today.

I strongly support the goal of making New York City's taxi fleet greener. Given the realities of global climate change and the clear links between auto emissions and asthma, lung disease, and other serious threats to public health, there is no question that we should be taking steps to mitigat ethe environmental impact of taxi traffic in New York. But it is critical that we go about this in the right way, and for the right reasons. Unfortunately, it has become apparent to me that, in the name of a worthy goal, the Taxi and Limousine Commission is using flawed metrics and a rushed timetable to provide a public relations victory for the outgoing mayoral administration - even if it means sacrificing other important priorites in the process.

The TLC's deadline of October 1, 2008, for achieving the 25 miles-per-gallon standard is simply not realistic. Vehicle manufacturers and the vast majority of the taxi industry have made this clear: there will not be enough vehicles available. The production of hybrid vehicles cannot currently meet demand and there are not enough parts to make more vehicles to meet the TLC's deadline. Yet the TLC insists on maintaining the deadline regardless of this information. In doing so it is pursuing an arbitrary timeline based on a single metric, miles per gallon, and risks sacrificing the broader interests of taxi riders.

As you are aware, I have been urging the TLC to move toward a taxi fleet that is fully accessible for riders with disabilities. In a New York Post op-ed last December, I noted the serious shortcomings of the taxi models that currently qualify for "wheelchair" medallions, and called on the TLC to approve new models that are genuinely safe and accessible. As it stands, all three vehicles that qualify for "wheelchair" medallions - two versions of the Chevrolet Uplander and one of the Dodge Caravan - are side-loading, which means that most motorized wheelchairs do no fit into the passenger section, and wheelchairs that do fit cannot be properly secured.

The industry has long argued that better models were not available, but this situation has changed and the industry is genuinely excited about the prospect of developing taxis that are both environmentally friendly and fully accessible - but only if there is adequate time allowed to do so.

There is absolutely no reason why there should be any conflict between developing clean air taxis and taxis that are fully accessible. Indeed, we have a unique opportunity to achieve both goals at the same time. But by rushing the process, the TLC is inexcusably pitting people with disabilities against the environment and public health concerns.

The TLC has put the cart before the horse, developing regulations before properly assessing what might be possible for the next generation of taxis. The first priority should have been the development of the Taxi of Tomorrow, not the arbitrary imposition of a standard based on a single metric, on an industry that cannot possibly meet that standard in this economic climate with so few hybrid vehicles and replacement parts available. Fuel efficiency is an important factr, but it is not the only one.

This is all the more ironic because the TLC's own "Taxi of Tomorrow" initiative has stimulated manufacturers to find solutions that combine clean air goals with accessibility. For instance, Ford's Transit Connect, a vehicle that has been operating in Europe as a taxi for years, would be fully wheelchair accessible, twice as fuel efficient as the Crown Victoria, and have ultra-clean tailpipe emissions. Ford anticipates mass productions and roll out the Transit Connect in September 2009, nine months after the TLC's deadline. But by pushing medallion owners to invest in new vehicles this fall - for the sake of meeting an arbitrary October 1 deadline - the TLC is undermining its own efforts to encourage owners to adopt more promising vehicles that will be available within the next year or two.

The TLC should slow down. Nobody is asking for a prolonged delay in implementing stronger fuel efficiency standards. We are only asking the Commission take the time to ensure that improved fuel efficiency in the short term does not come at the expense of the opportunity to solve other problems with the taxi fleet.

Unfortunately, the TLC's timetable suggests that political imperatives are taking precedence over the needs of taxi riders and the general public. I cannot help but think that, in rushing toward an unrealistic but public relations-friendly fuel efficiency goal, the Commission is more intent on providing the Mayor with a legacy project than on taking the opportunity to develop a genuinely well-rounded taxi. Ironically, if the TLC would simply postpone the deadline until the Fall of 2009, when accessible purpose-built taxis start coming off the production line, the Mayor would have a more complete legacy of providing public vehicles that are both environmentally friendly and accessible. From a publicity standpoint, accessible taxis may not be as attractive as green taxis - but they are no less important.

Again, there is no reason for these two goals to be in conflict. Our taxis should be accessible and green. Rather than sacrifice everything else for the sake of meeting a miles-per-gallon standard, we should be working on a complete solution to developing the taxi of tomorrow. But this means operating on a reality-based timetable, not a political timetable.

I urge the TLC to reconsider the October 1 deadline. We must not squander the progress that has been made by the Taxi of Tomorrow initiative. The ultimate goal is within reach: taxis for all, both accessible and environmentally friendly. It is critical that we take advantage of the opportunity, rather than letting it slip away in the name of political expediency.

Thank you again for the opportunity to testify today.

834 Legislative Office Building
Albany, NY 12248
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315 East 65th Street
New York, NY 10065
212-860-4906
FAX 917-432-2983

E-mail: KellnerM @ assembly.state.ny.us

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