 |
The Taxi 07 Exhibit premiered at the New York International Auto Show at the Jacob Javits Convention Center, April 6-15, 2007.
The Taxi 07 Exhibit enthralled over 100,000 visitors in just 12 days, and garnered global media attention to what the taxi of the future should be.
This exhibit was part of Taxi 07, the Design Trust program aiming to reinvent the NYC taxicab and taxi system. With this ambitious, large-scale public exhibit, the Design Trust
showed tangible improvements to the taxi vehicle and system created by top design firms and major auto manufacturers (full list of participants below).
Exhibit highlights included:
• four alternative-fuel taxis
• two wheelchair accessible taxis
• 21st century taxi stands
• street furniture addressing driver's needs
• new and improved roof lights
• fully-customized partition for passengers
• improved passenger compartments
• a film portrait of NYC taxi drivers ( watch here)
• 2 historic checker cabs
|
All
exhibit
participants were required to address five
of Taxi 07's ten design challenges, which
include a roof light with improved legibility;
a partition with passenger services; integral
child seats; skylight; hybrid or alternate-fuel
engines; wheelchair accessibility; and
alternatives to the four-passenger sedan.
In addition to the eight taxi prototypes, the Taxi 07 Exhibit also showed the most comprehensive array of information on the New York City taxi ever mounted.
The Taxi 07 Exhibit catalyzed a sea change in the New York City taxi system. With Mayor Michael Bloomberg's announcement in May 2007 that all taxis must get 30 miles to the gallon by 2012, and the Taxi & Limousine Commission's "Taxi of Tomorrow" project working to design a New York City-specific taxi, the results of the Design Trust's Taxi 07 project will soon be seen on our streets.
|
|
Exhibit Participants 
The American Taxi: Benjamin Merkel and
Christophe Monier
Antenna Design
Art Center College of Design
BAF Technologies
BASF Catalysts LLC
Birsel + Seck
Bronx Auto Group
Bruno Independent Living Aids
Campfire Goods Incorporated
College for Creative Studies
Hybrid Product Design and Development
Hybrid Technologies
Kia Motors America
Let There Be Neon
New York State Energy Research and
Development Authority (NYSERDA)
Pratt Institute
Ricardo US
Richter + Ratner
RIDES™ Magazine
Nathalie Rozot
Schaller Consulting
Sirius Satellite Radio
Smart Design
Standard Taxi
Studio James Long
Taxidepot
TRUCK Product Architecture
Bruce Ulrich
Shravan Vidyarthi
Weisz + Yoes
World's Fastest Taxi
Exhibit Design & Construction
Exhibition design, consultation and experience provided by Imagination, USA Inc. Lighting design by Nathalie Rozot with James Long. Exhibit construction donated by Richter + Ratner, with help from Highrise Hoisting & Scaffolding, Inc.
Special Thanks
Matthew Daus, NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission
Design Trust Board of Directors
Marc Heiman, Richter + Ratner
Paul Herzan, Chairman, Cooper-Hewitt, National Design
Museum, Smithsonian Institution
Alan Liebensohn, NY International Auto Show
Candida Romanelli, NY International Auto Show
Andrew Salkin, NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission
Bruce Schaller, Schaller Consulting
Peter Schenkman, NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission
|
|
|
Newspaper & Print Coverage
"Design of the Times", Surface, The Annual Design Issue, p.96
"Hailing the Future" by Lisa Delgado, The Architect's Newspaper, April 25, 2007
"How Green Is Your Taxi?" by Bradley Tirpak and Dennis Tirpak, The New York Times, April 22, 2007
"Yellow Fever" by Raven Snook, Time Out New York, April 5-11, 2007, p.59
"A Dozen Don't-Miss Cars at the Show" by Jerry Garret, The New York Times, April 8, 2007
"Behind the Wheels" by Joan Chiverton, The New York Times, April 8, 2007
"Laugh Lines", The New York Times, April 8, 2007
"All Hail the Yellow Taxi" by Greg Gattuso, Daily News, April 6, 2007
"To Mark a Cab Centennial, These Designers Look Ahead" by James Barron, The New York Times, April 6, 2007
"Bells and Whistles for a Better Taxi" by Stevenson Swanson, The Chicago Tribune, April 5, 2007
"Hailing the Future's Cabs" by Justin Rocket Silverman, amNewYork, April 5, 2007
"Glitz Eyed For City's Pretty Ugly Taxis" by Jeremy Olshan, The New York Post, April 1, 2007
"Way, Way Off Broadway, New York Auto Show Will Go On" by Lawrence Ulrich, The New York Times, April 1, 2007
"Taxi!" by Lawrence Ulrich, The New York Times, March 30, 2007
"Taxi to Show Its Stuff" by Joseph Szczesny, The Oakland Press, March 28, 2007
|
Television & Radio Coverage
"Taxi!", New York Voices, WNYC, April 13, 2007
"Late Night with Conan O'Brien", WNBC, April 5, 2007
"Good Day New York", WNYW Fox, April 5, 2007
"My 9 News", WWOR, April 4, 2007
"News All Day", NY1, April 4, 2007
"News All Morning", NY1, April 4, 2007
"The Today Show", WNBC, April 4, 2007
"The Call", NY1, April 4, 2007
"News at Eleven", NY1, April 4, 2007
"Fox 5 News at 10", WNYW Fox, April 4, 2007
"Eyewitness News", WABC, April 4, 2007
"Tonight Show with Jay Leno", WNBC, April 2, 2007
"Morning News", CW11, April 2, 2007
"Taxi Makeover", The Leonard Lopate Show, WNYC, March 29, 2007
Web Coverage
"Rally Cry for a Taxi Revolution" by Jim Travers, Consumer Reports magazine, May 3, 2007
"A Push for Cleaner-Fuel Taxicabs" by Sewell Chan, The New York Times, May 3, 2007
"New York Celebrates the Taxi" by Mairi Beautyman, Interior Design magazine, April 10, 2007
"Video: These Yellow Taxis are Green", CNN.com
"When Cabs Fly", New York magazine, April 5, 2007
"New York's Favorite Ride Turns 100" by Michelle Krebs, Inside Line, April 2, 2007
"Sneak a Peek at NYC's Future Taxis", Gizmodo.com, March 28, 2007
"Advanced Taxi Prototypes to be Demoed at New York Car Show", Engadget.com, March 26, 2007
"Taxi 07", Dexigner.com, March 26, 2007
"Taxi Innovation at the Auto Show", Auto Review Blog, March 23, 2007
"Taxi Centennial", amNewYork Tracker, March 22, 2007
|
|
