By Christopher Tan, Senior Correspondent

IT BUCKED the trend last year by rolling out petrol-powered taxis. Now, it is launching Singapore's first fleet of hybrid cabs.

Two-year-old Prime Taxis, owned by veteran motor trader Neo Nam Heng, expects to launch about 20 petrol-electric Toyota Prius cabs later this month.

"Our hybrid cabs will be able to do about 20km per litre of fuel - almost twice the distance the majority of cabs here can manage," explained Mr Neo.

A petrol-electric hybrid typically has a conventional engine and an electric motor. It runs on either one or both, depending on the situation. The motor is powered by a battery pack, which is recharged automatically when the car is running on petrol or when it brakes.

Hybrids are, however, pricier. Even after the Government's green tax rebate, they cost $10,000 more than petrol models of an equivalent size.

Because of this, Prime will charge a slightly higher rental for its hybrid taxis, at $86.80 a day - versus $85.80 for a Toyota Wish and $74.90 for a Toyota Axio.

This does not concern cabby Zulkarnain Mohamad, 62, though. Currently driving a petrol Toyota Fielder, he said he was confident of sizeable fuel savings with the Prius.

"I'm getting about 13-14km per litre for the Fielder. According to the Prius brochure, it can do 24-25km. Even if I get 20-22km, it is good enough," he said. "Overall I believe it will save me a lot... despite the higher rental."

Mr Neo said cabbies who drive the Toyota Prius for 400km to 450km a day stand to enjoy daily fuel savings of $16 to $20 or around $500 a month.

Although this is the first time that hybrid cabs will be used here, taxi operators in cities such as Tokyo and New York have included them in their fleets for some years now.

These environmentally-friendlier cabs are unlikely to make much difference to commuters at large, although 30-something technopreneur Lau Sau Kuen said she would not mind paying a bit more for a ride in one. The Prius' flagdown rate will be $3, versus $2.80 for most regular cabs.

"I think it's fine. Twenty cents is very little to do your bit for the environment," she said.

Singapore Environment Council executive director Howard Shaw welcomes the new green fleet.

"I think it's a great idea. In fleet use, where taxis are on the road almost 24 hours a day, the fuel savings can be very significant," he said. "And when you talk about taxis, where there is a lot of stop-start and a lot of idling in queues, hybrids totally make sense."

Prime Taxis has about 570 cabs, of which 165 are petrol-driven. The rest run on compressed natural gas (CNG), a fuel seen as a cleaner alternative to diesel.

Like hybrids, CNG cars are granted a sizeable tax break equivalent to 40per cent of their Additional Registration Fee - the main vehicle tax here.

At least one other cab operator is looking to adding hybrid cabs to its fleet. ComfortDelGro spokesman Tammy Tan said the company was exploring the option with various vehicle manufacturers.

Out of 570,000 largely petrol-driven passenger cars here, about 2,500 are hybrids and 2,700 are CNG-powered. And out of 24,500 - largely diesel - cabs on the road, about 1,700 run on CNG.

christan@sph.com.sg

This article was first published in The Straits Times.

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