New electric black cab 'could save drivers £200 per week' If the vehicle's battery is fully charged, it can be programmed to run for 50 miles before the petrol engine kicks in. The taxi - which is being publicly tested from March - also features a panoramic sunroof, increased boot space, mood lighting and a digital infotainment system. Drivers can use the cab's GPS system to program areas where it should only run on electricity to help meet targets in zero or ultra-low emissions zones. The manufacturer has had interest in the vehicle from foreign markets in the vehicle and plans to sell taxis to other UK cities including Birmingham, Glasgow and Edinburgh after launching in London, where 2,500 black cabs are sold every year. Sir Charles said: "This is focused on London, we've been talking to Transport for London [TfL] for a number of years to make sure we've got it absolutely right to the specifications they want and what the mayor wants." But a row has broken out over the launch after a London black cab association claimed that its drivers were not consulted during the design process. Steve McNamara, general secretary of the Licensed Taxi Drivers Association, said that industry workers, including drivers and mechanics, were ignored by Metrocab during the development of their flagship electric taxi, which is due to launch later this year. We've got just over 10,000 members now. I speak to hundreds of cab drivers every week, I speak to all the other organisations, the proprietors, the mechanics, I get dozens of phone calls from them, all the different charity groups and no one I've spoken to has had any dealings with them at all," Mr McNamara told The Telegraph. The Mayor has driven it, Peter Hendy [TfL commissioner] has driven it, but none of them buys cabs. They could not have got it more wrong if they tried. These people don't know the industry and they've got it so wrong. They've put themselves on the back foot before they've launched it and you think, 'how much more can they get it wrong? This is not a car they're going to be selling to the public. A spokesman for cab company Dial-A-Cab said that they had not been consulted about Metrocab's new vehicle but its drivers were asked to complete a survey to gather information about potential locations for new charging points. The Source London website shows just four rapid charge points for electric vehicles in London with one centrally, on Eagle Wharf Road in Hackney, but commercial vehicles are banned from using it. However, a TfL spokesman said that this is a technical glitch and there are in fact 129 rapid charge points across the capital. Mr McNamara said that regular and fast-charge points are not good enough for cab drivers as they would have to wait for up to four hours to recharge their vehicles. Responding to the complaint, a spokesman for Metrocab said: "We have involved taxi drivers and TfL throughout the development of the new MetroCab, and we fully intend to continue working with taxi associations, operators and user groups as we bring the new MetroCab to market. Another step in this process will be the launch of our in-market fleet trials at City Hall this Thursday at a presentation hosted by Mayor Boris Johnson. We are fully committed to the involvement of taxi drivers, associations and user groups in this process and will be collecting real time feedback from them when our trials begin next month. Drivers can register for the trials at City Hall on Thursday or at www.newmetrocab.com/trials.