With a growing number of green taxi firms in London, such as Green Tomato and ClimateCars, it was only a matter of time before the traditional black cab followed suit.

Manganeze Bronze is also finding it increasingly difficult to export their cabs to other cities due to their emissions.

In April, they announced plans to introduce greener electric taxis. Working with Tanfield Group the vehicles will be able to do about 100km on each charge. However, a higher price tag than the standard model is likely to limit the demand for the new cabs, despite significant savings on fuel over their lifetime.

Last month, the other London black cab manufacturer - London Taxi International (LTI) - announced it is working with a consortium of specialists and using government funding to develop a zero-emissions taxi by 2012. The cars will run on hydrogen provided at central depots.

With london taxis estimated to contribute 4% of the capital's CO2 emissions, these changes are very welcome.

http://www.reallifenews.com/environment/2008/06/the_london_cab_goes_green.php