London's new electric taxi will be on show at Goodwood this weekend

We already know that London is one of the cities with the strongest commitment to fighting environmental pollution on its streets. The tough measures taken by the city council make driving in the centre of the English capital difficult and very expensive. But they also help drive the development of public transport that can keep running despite those restrictions. The London Taxi Company will present its new fully electric taxi, called the TX5, at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, and it is set to be very popular on London’s streets in the coming years.

This taxi has been designed by Geely, the Chinese car manufacturer, and over the past few weeks it has been put through tough tests in extreme temperatures in Arizona. The dry, harsh American summer has been the car’s greatest enemy, but it has passed every test it has been subjected to under these conditions. In fact, thanks to Autoexpress we have a gallery of images from these moments, showing how it reacts to extreme heat.

The electric taxi has been able to cover around 460 km each day, which is roughly equivalent to 10 trips between central London and Heathrow airport, there and back. That mileage is enough to give a good service to Londoners and visitors alike. After the heat tests, the coming weeks will be devoted to tests in mountainous and more humid environments, which will make clear that it can move freely through London’s streets.

The new London electric taxi will look like the classic black London taxis and will be built in a plant created specifically for its production. It is the first plant built in the United Kingdom to manufacture fully electric cars, and 300 million pounds has been invested in its construction.

The new TX5 is an electric vehicle with a combustion engine: it uses a three-cylinder combustion engine that does not drive the wheels but serves as a means of charging the car’s batteries. With this, it can achieve a range of 112 kilometres in electric mode, so it may be very attractive to taxi professionals, who will be able to move freely around the city despite any restrictions in place.

The taxi will not arrive until late 2017, but it will not be limited to London: after its launch in the English city it will reach other markets, including Spain. As a curiosity, the taxi was designed by a team based in Barcelona, so it has a Spanish contribution to its work and this city will be one of those that enjoys this taxi model.