Singapore Mass Rapid Transit (SMRT) Corporation’s Strides Mobility has introduced the first 15 examples of the MG5 EV that will form the basis of its new electric taxi fleet. The company said that by the end of this year, its Strides Taxi service will have 300 of these vehicles in service, making it the taxi operator with the largest fleet of EVs in Singapore.
The company said that it would provide a suite of solutions to encourage point-to-point drivers to be early adopters of its electric taxis, including working with industry players such as SP Group and Shell to provide convenience and discounts for drivers’ charging needs.
The MG5 has a range of 300 km on a full charge, which the company said is sufficient for most taxi partners. When charging is required, Strides Taxi partners will have access to around 140 public DC fast chargers at 80 locations across the island, where they will be able to get the MG5’s battery to 80% capacity in just 40 minutes.
It added that compared to a hybrid, the cost of charging the MG5 is more economical, and estimates that over the course of a month, a partner driving the MG5 could save around S$300 (RM925) on energy costs. As a means of encouraging take-up, the company said that early adopters will enjoy free rental on the MG5 and unlimited charging for the first 30 days.
According to Strides Mobility, it plans to have the entire Strides taxi fleet becoming 100% electric within the next five years. With the carbon footprint being reduced by up to 10 tonnes of carbon emission per vehicle per year, it estimates that the conversion of its entire petrol-hybrid fleet to fully electric will result in a carbon footprint reduction of around 20,000 tonnes per year.
The post SMRT rolls out its first MG5 electric cabs in Singapore – Strides Taxi to have 300 EVs in its fleet by year end appeared first on Paul Tan's Automotive News.
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