NEW YORK

A veteran yellow cab driver has died after he was fatally injured by his own car while trying to chase-down a passenger who had stolen his bag.

Mohammad Zafrullah, 65, had dropped-off the rider at around 11.45pm on Sunday between Seward and Rosedale Avenues in the Bronx, New York, when the incident occurred.

As he got ready to pull-away, the rider walked around to the passenger-side of the car, reached into the open window and grabbed the driver's backpack.

Veteran taxi driver Mohammad Zafrullah, 65, of Brooklyn, died of his injuries on Monday after being struck by his own cab while in pursuit of a thief who stole his bag

Zafrullah dropped his passenger off between Seward and Rosedale Avenues, in the Bronx, when the thief stole his bag

Zafrullah raced after the thief, but had not put his vehicle into the 'parked' position and instead left it in 'reverse,' according to the New York Post.

As he chased around the back of his car it rolled into him, knocking Zalfrullah to the ground and then continuing to run over him, before hitting a parked vehicle.

First responders attending the scene confirmed that Zafrullah was unresponsive and lying in the middle of the street when they found him.

The Brooklyn resident was rushed to Jacobi Medical Center, according to NYPost, where he died of his injuries shortly after 7.35am on Monday.

A 911 caller initially believed Zafrullah had been stabbed until a gruesome video was discovered revealing the cause of his death, New York Daily News reported. 

Police are on the lookout for the thief, who was wearing a white shirt, but have not made clear whether the suspect will face charges beyond snatching the bag. 

Zafrullah had been a cab driver since at least 1997, the Daily News were told by the Taxi and Limousine Commission. 

https://dailym.ai/30CGNIt
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Capital Cars, in Edinburgh, is one of the largest fully-licensed private hire taxi companies in the capital. 

 It provides a range of services from airport transfers to luxury chauffeur trips and exclusive tours of Scotland.  Capital Cars now has a fleet of four Teslas – two Model X and two Model S cars – all of which are available to customers by special request.


Ross Pickburn, regional sales manager at Simply, said: “Capital Cars is one of the first taxi companies in Edinburgh to start replacing its fleet with electric vehicles – which not only helps the environment but also brings down the cost per mile of journeys.  It’s a pleasure to deal with such a progressive and green company.”

Stephen Rose, director, Capital Cars, said: “We consider ourselves to be a very versatile taxi firm. We know that our customers have a wide range of interests, and the different services – and the different cars –  we offer certainly reflect that.

  The Tesla has proven hugely popular with the executive market, but also for special occasions where people like the idea that they are reducing their carbon footprint, compared to hiring traditional vehicles.

https://bit.ly/2SgfPn4
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Cheadle technology company Autocab has surpassed an aggregated three billion bookings via its cloud-based software as it continues to provide taxi firms across the UK with the tech to transform themselves into global booking platforms.

 This number comprises a recent milestone of one billion bookings through Autocab’s automated call-handling system, Phantom 3, since its launch in 2014, as well as web and app-based bookings.

 In total, the company’s technology now powers 52% of the private hire and taxi market in the UK.

https://bit.ly/2Y7u42P 
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LEVC 

Marketing agency Palmer Hargreaves, in Waterloo Place, has been appointed by electric taxi company LEVC (London Electric Vehicle Company).

The agency has been tasked with finding suitable candidates to test drive LEVC’s electric taxis in Birmingham, Manchester and London.

The campaign will be carried out over the next 12 months with scope for the agency to take LEVC’s electric taxi proposition overseas with the support of its offices in Germany, Russia and China.

https://bit.ly/30AL3Z4
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Electric Car-Owners Shocked: New Study Confirms EVs Considerably Worse For Climate Than Diesel Cars

The Brussel Times reports that a new German study exposes how electric vehicles will hardly decrease CO2 emissions in Europe over the coming years, as the introduction of electric vehicles won't lead to a reduction in CO2 emissions from highway traffic.

According to the study directed by Christoph Buchal of the University of Cologne, published by the Ifo Institute in Munich last week, electric vehicles have "significantly higher CO2 emissions than diesel cars." That is due to the significant amount of energy used in the mining and processing of lithium, cobalt, and manganese, which are critical raw materials for the production of electric car batteries.

A battery pack for a Tesla Model 3 pollutes the climate with 11 to 15 tonnes of CO2. Each battery pack has a lifespan of approximately ten years and total mileage of 94,000, would mean 73 to 98 grams of CO2 per kilometer (116 to 156 grams of CO2 per mile), Buchal said. Add to this the CO2 emissions of the electricity from powerplants that power such vehicles, and the actual Tesla emissions could be between 156 to 180 grams of CO2 per kilometer (249 and 289 grams of CO2 per mile).

German researchers criticized the fact that EU legislation classifies electric cars as zero-emission cars; they call it a deception because electric cars, like the Model 3, with all the factors, included, produce more emissions than diesel vehicles by Mercedes.
They further wrote that the EU target of 59 grams of CO2 per kilometer by 2030 is "technically unrealistic."

The reality is, in addition to the CO2 emissions generated in mining the raw materials for the production of electric vehicles, all EU countries generate significant CO2 emissions from charging the vehicles’ batteries using dirty power plants.
For true emission reductions, researchers concluded the study by saying methane-powered gasoline engines or hydrogen motors could cut CO2 emissions by a third and possibly eliminate the need for diesel motors.

https://bit.ly/2YPykBb