Boston cabbies crabby about green taxi rule

A new Boston ‘green taxi’ rule decrees that all cab drivers and operators must convert their fleets to hybrids by 2015.

Boston's cabbies are a crabby crew even on the best of days, but they're especially ticked off lately.


Taxi drivers are hacked about the financial ramifications of the rule. Most drive Crown Vics that can be had used for $6,000 to $7,500, while a new Prius [shown above] from Boston auto dealer giant Herb Chambers goes for $24,585

That's a lot of scratch for a cab driver who, thanks to out-of-control gas prices, is already having trouble making ends meet.

It doesn't help that the eco-friendlier cars cost more to insure, have tiny trunks and, in the cabbies' opinions, aren't tough enough to do the job.

Raising cab fares would seem to be the simple solution except that Boston's cab rates are already higher than those in New York City, San Francisco, Chicago or Miami.

More of the story here.