The model is based on the Up! city car, which was first show at the Frankfurt Motor Show last year. The Up! is a concept design that can deal with very tight space and emissions restrictions.

The VTC runs on a lithium-ion batteries that allow the vehicle to be driven for around 186 miles between charges. Incidentally, an 80 per cent charge will take around one hour to complete, so there’s nothing to stop the VTC being used on relatively long journeys should it become a commercial model.

Taxi drivers will have noticed that public hire vehicles in London are no longer just the standard LTIs, but also include the relatively new Mercedes Vito. Is there space for the the VW?

There’s no reason as to why the VW couldn’t prosper as a London black cab. However, it’s not currently designed to stick to the strict legal requirements that taxis must meet on London roads. There’s no saying that this time won’t come though.

If you need black cab insurance, Quotiva is the right place for you — we help 1000s of taxi drivers find cover each month.

More specifically engine production rose 12 per cent. Industry website, www.Motortrader.com, has quoted Paul Everitt, head of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, who states that ‘UK automotive manufacturing made a flying start to 2011 despite tough economic conditions as new vehicle production grew 8.9 per cent in January’. Everitt went on to say that for this positive streak to continue, the ‘government must prioritise UK manufacturing, through a supportive tax system, plus sustained investment in skills, R&D and capital equipment.’

Lets hope that the next budget allows for the motor trade industry to keep prospering.

If you work in the motor trade and are looking for traders insurance, let the Quotiva Network help you find great deals from specialist brokers.

Darlington has insisted that space-saver spare wheels are no longer acceptable in taxis.

A spokesperson for the council has stated that this is because spare wheels like these are not ‘designed for long journeys or to be used at speed’.

This has forced many drivers to purchase a spare wheel and tyre to ensure they do not fall foul of the new regulations.

However, whilst this may appear an unnecessary expense — especially in a time where taxi insurance is harder to find and fuel costs seem to be rising — it could possibly save a driver having to cut a day of work short in the future.

It is recommended that drivers have their eyes tested once every three years. It’s important to remember that there is a legal requirement when it comes to vision and driving: drivers must be able to read new-style number plates from 20 metres away and old-style number plates from a distance of 20.5 metres. If you require glasses or contact lenses to be able to read a number plate from the distances above then it is essential to wear them at all times whilst driving a vehicle.

Of course, there’s a good chance that if a van driver was involved in a collision and their eyesight was drawn into the dispute, should they fail the legal requirements their van insurance policy may be invalidated.

If you’re a van driver and spend a lot of time on the road working as a courier or as a tradesman travelling between jobs, it is essential to make sure your eyesight meets the standard expected for driving vehicles on British roads.

According to witnesses the woman leapt by choice, climbing over a safety barrier to do so. It is assumed she was attempting to commit suicide.

Although the woman in question survived the fall, she is now in intensive care receiving treatment for numerous injuries. However, the fact that she is alive is miraculous.

Thankfully the taxi driver, whose vehicle was left heavily damaged, left his vehicle just before the woman landed on the car and was not hurt in the incident. However, had he not exited the vehicle in time, it is unlikely he would have survived the impact. Let’s hope his taxi insurance policy offers him cover for incidents like this …

It’s also not surprising that drivers’ vehicles have been damaged due to these potholes and that these drivers want compensation. But how do councils pay for these compensation claims?

If an article in Scotland’s Evening Times is anything to go by, some councils plan to pay for these claims with their public liability insurance policies.

Generally PL insurance policies are taken out by businesses and organisations in order to protect them form claims made by the public in relation to the services they provide or their property. These claims could be for damage caused to third party property of even bodily damage to a third party.

However, some councils have stated that they would pay for damages using their roads budget for the year.

1,238 customers during the month of December 2010 participated in the survey after receiving service or repairs on their vehicle. These customer responses form the base of the findings according to the government-backed, but independent motor trade regulatory group.

The survey, conducted monthly, also found a 94% satisfaction rate with the service quality offered and the same group would make recommendations to their friends and family regarding their garage.

Managing director of the initiative, Chris Mason makes the point that even as more and more subscribers sign on and the rate of customer response has increased, satisfaction levels with the service have remained high, a key indication of the service’s reliability and high quality. Garages signed up for the service will see a myriad of benefits. Not only will if improve their reputation, possibly resulting in a customer increase, but it may help earn them a cheaper motor trade insurance quote, should their broker or insurer acknowledge their motor codes status.

The Motor Codes initiative was started in 2008 and currently has 6,500 garages subscribed. Anyone looking for more information about the Motor Codes scheme, may find it at their web-page: www.motorcodes.co.uk.

According to news on the Leicester Mercury’s website, public hire prices will increase by £0.40 per mile. Unsurprisingly it is late night travellers that will see the biggest increase in fares, with the first mile set to cost £4.80 and each additional mile costing £1.80.

Whilst the public are less than pleased about the rises, taxi drivers believe them to be a necessity. Anyone who owns a car will have noticed the increased cost of petrol and diesel (and let’s keep in mind that taxis are not as fuel efficient as most modern cars). Taxi operators are also facing an increase in the cost of black cab insurance premiums, which is a significant monthly or annual payment for drivers.

This is in fact the first increase in public hire fares within Leicester since 2007 and many taxi drivers would argue the rise is overdue. However, whilst a price rise can be detrimental to some services, the nature of the public hire industry should prevent a loss in demand — most people use black cabs due to necessity and a marginal price increase should not deter them.

Figures released by the media claim that the BBC spend nearly £50k a day on taxis and hire cars. This would lead to a cost of around £13 million per annum for taxis exclusively.

Understandably, BBC employees who have been told that pensions may have to be cut are less than pleased with the published figures.

Gent Morrissey, of media union Bectu, speaking to the Daily Express said that the head of the BBC, Mark Thompson has a salary figure larger than any savings made on taxi spend in the past year and that ’senior executives use taxis as a matter of course and they are not making programmes or on a deadline. What is their excuse?’

Whilst it is understandable that those working for the corporation after hours may need to use taxis at certain points, there is no need for to shun public transport during the day time.

Still, this is good news for public and private hire drivers situated around the BBC’s various offices.

The idea is to show that renewable energy and electric mobility can provide a solution to our fossil fuel crisis.

This time there will be four other teams racing him around the world — from Germany, Switzerland, Australia and South Korea.

The aim of the race is to show that electric vehicles are practical for everyday use and they plan to cover over 18,000 miles, stopping off at the U.N climate change meetings in Cancun this November.

Who knows if they’ll be offering lifts to passengers on the trip, if so let’s hope they have their taxi insurance!