London's Met to purchase more than 4,000 Low-Carbon Cars (Int'l, Ind. Report)

Scotland Yard will replace half of its 8,600 strong fleet with either electric or air-powered vehicles within four years. The Metropolitan Police Service already runs more than 140 Toyota Prius hybrid police cars, and four Smart Fortwos EVs have also been used within London's congestion zone (ep Overviews, June 27, 2009). In fact, Nigel Jakubowski, head of Met transport services, says the Fortwo EVs are perfect for a cops who work busy cities. "The uniformed officers who have driven them say they are very quick. We have installed charging points at the stations the cars are based in, and they work very well."

(Source: The Met, April 24, Autocar, April 23, 2009). Contact: SmartUSA, www.smartusa.com; Metropolitan Police Service, www.met.police.uk.