伦敦黑色出租车将驶上上海街头

London's limousine-like black cabs will be coming to Shanghai streets -- though here's hoping the fares won't be as outrageous.

伦敦黑色出租车将驶上上海街头，不过，市民希望这种类似豪华轿车的出租车定价不要太离谱。

Shanghai LTI Automobile Co., a unit of Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, is going to sell 200 TX4 cabs to a Shanghai-based taxi operator, a spokeswoman said. The first batch of 50 TX4s will be delivered to Shanghai Qiangsheng Holding Co. in September, she said.

据上海英伦帝华汽车公司(Shanghai LTI Automobile Co.)的一位发言人称，该公司将向上海一家出租车运营商出售200辆TX4出租车。她还说，第一批50辆车将在9月份交付给上海强生控股股份有限公司(Shanghai Qiangsheng Holding Co.)。上海英伦是浙江吉利控股集团(Zhejiang Geely Holding Group)的子公司。

The Shanghai Daily cited Shanghai Qiangsheng as saying it will use the vehicles to give priority service to people who have special needs, such as the elderly and disabled.

据《上海日报》(Shanghai Daily)援引上海强生的话报道称，这些出租车在投入运营后将优先服务老年人和残障人士等有特殊需求的群体。

A significant departure from the Volkswagen cabs on Shanghai streets, the TX4 features an open-access luggage platform where the front passenger seat would be, with four seats in the back. 'The Shanghai-made TX4 is the same model as the black cabs built in London. They are disabled-friendly vehicles,' said the spokeswoman.

与上海街头的大众(Volkswagen)出租车截然不同的是，TX4的前排将不设置副驾驶座，而是供乘客放置行李的开放平台，该款车的后排设有四个座位。上海英伦的发言人表示，这款在上海生产的TX4以伦敦的黑色出租车为原型，是兼顾残障人士需求的一款出租车。

Officials at Shanghai Qiangsheng weren't immediately available for comment.

记者未能立即联系到上海强生的管理人士就此置评。

The flag-down fare has yet to be decided. When taking a standard four-door taxi in Shanghai, fares start at 14 yuan, or $2.25, for the first three kilometers, and increase by 2.4 yuan for every additional kilometer. The cost will increase by 30% late in the evening typically from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m.

打车价格还未确定。目前上海标准的四门出租车前三公里起步价为人民币14元（合2.25美元），此后每公里价格为2.4元。晚上11点至次日凌晨5点的打车价格将上浮30%。

Shanghai LTI sells the TX4 for 200,000 yuan, more than double the cost of a Volkswagen AG's Santana, which accounts for the lion's share of the taxi fleet in Shanghai.

上海英伦帝华汽车TX4的售价为人民币20万元，比大众汽车的桑塔纳贵一倍还要多。目前上海的出租车主要是桑塔纳。

London's black cab, sometimes called a hackney carriage, has a colorful history dating back to the beginning of the 20th century. Its high-roofed passenger cabin was initially designed to accommodate gentlemen's top hats, and the trunk was built to fit the old luggage trunks that travelers brought on overseas trips. Cab drivers undergo extensive training and pass a detailed test called 'the knowledge' before setting out on the British capital's roads.

伦敦黑色出租车拥有辉煌的历史，最早可以追溯到20世纪初。它的高车顶设计之初是为了方便绅士的大礼帽，而行李箱的设计则是为了方便前往海外的旅行者所携带的老式行李箱。出租车司机在上路之前要经过大量的训练并通过名为“知识点”的详细测试。

In 2006, Geely took over a 20% stake in the maker of London black cabs, which is now known as London Taxi Co, and set up Shanghai LTI to manufacture the cabs in China to pare costs. In February last year, Geely acquired the principal assets of the company in a deal worth about $18 million.

2006年，吉利汽车收购了伦敦黑色出租车制造商（目前名为伦敦出租车有限公司(London Taxi Co.)）超过20%的股权，并成立了上海英伦帝华在中国制造这种出租车，以便降低成本。去年2月份，吉利以大约1,800万美元的价格收购了伦敦出租车有限公司的主要资产。

Shanghai LTI has sold about 1,000 TX4 cabs in mainland China, including Beijing, Hangzhou, Ningbo, Nanjing and Guangzhou.

上海英伦帝华在包括北京、杭州、宁波、南京和广州在内的中国大陆城市已经出售了大约1,000辆TX4出租车。