New York yellow cab owners sue over green plan

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A group of New York City taxi owners is suing the city over a plan to turn the entire fleet of cabs "green" by 2012, saying the plan compromises safety and is unconstitutional.

Under the plan, promoted as an environmental model for other large cities, every new taxi must get at least 30 miles per gallon, a target now met by hybrid and clean diesel cars.

The Metropolitan Taxicab Board of Trade, an association of taxi owners accounting for about a quarter of the city's 13,000 yellow cabs, filed a complaint in Manhattan federal court late on Monday seeking an injunction to keep the regulation from taking effect.

There are already about 1,400 hybrid taxis in the city, the Taxi and Limousine Commission said.

According to the lawsuit, only the federal government, not city officials, has the power to set fuel emission and efficiency standards.

Moreover, hybrid cars "have never been meaningfully tested and have no proven record of safety or reliability as commercial vehicles," the lawsuit said, noting that taxi cabs endure much heavier use than normal private vehicles, often being driven for 24 hours a day.

"While a decision to announce the immediate change to 'clean' taxis might be politically enticing and expedient, it is also irresponsible, dangerous and illegal," the suit said.

The city law department said in a statement it had not yet received the complaint and had no immediate comment.

Hybrid vehicles are powered by a combination of gasoline and electricity. They emit less exhaust and have better gas mileage than other vehicles.

(Reporting by Edith Honan, editing by Claudia Parsons)