Dubai Starts Conducting Trial Runs Of Hydrogen-Powered Taxis

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The depletion of non-renewable resources (fuels) is a major concern for the entire world. With the current consumption rate of these resources, especially petrol, we wouldn’t have any left in the near future for our future generations. To take this into account, many technological developments have been made and currently being made, to find a solution to this serious issue. One feasible solution could be using alternate fuel sources.

Electric vehicles are being said to be the future of automobile industry. And we can’t really help but digest the fact that sooner or later we’ll end up consuming all the petrol available on the Earth and will be left with no other option but to switch to alternate fuel sources. Apart from electric vehicles, automotive firms are developing hydrogen-powered vehicles as well. While such vehicles are still to be seen in abundance on road, Dubai has taken a step towards making this a reality. It has started conduction trial runs of a hydrogen-powered taxi in the city.

The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) announced on Saturday that a Toyota Mirai will be used for this test. It could be another feasible alternate source of fuel. A hydrogen-powered car is claimed to be emission free. It only emits water as its excrete. The Toyota Mirai here is said to cover up to 500km on a single refuel of its tank. Also, the refuelling of such vehicles is quick when compared to that of the electric vehicles which take hours to get recharged. Just like an electric vehicle, a hydrogen-powered car is noiseless.

Speaking on this topic, Mattar Al Tayer, Director-General and Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of RTA, said, “RTA attaches paramount importance to protecting the environment and saving power consumption… This experiment is a part of a low-carbon strategy aimed at making Dubai a role model for efficient power consumption and low-carbon emission. RTA will start a trial run of the vehicle as part of its limousine service at the Dubai International Airport to assess the economic feasibility and environmental benefits of its operation.”

The RTA has an aim of reducing the carbon emissions of taxis by 2 percent. Initiatives like this (hydrogen-powered taxi) would help it achieve its aim. At present, the Dubai Taxi Corporation (DTC), a subsidiary of the RTA, has become the first taxi operator in the Middle East to deploy a hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle (Mirai) in its fleet. RTA plans to replace half of the taxi fleet with eco-friendly vehicles by 2021. At present, around 20 percent of the fleet is hybrid.

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