WHY KARSAN?

Karsan is an international auto manufacturing company that specializes in urban transport vehicles. With over 40 years of experience in the design and manufacture of motor vehicles, Karsan recognized the need to create a custom designed vehicle that could be built from the ground up to be a New York City taxi.

Karsan has proposed a roomy, state-of-the-art vehicle that would revolutionize the taxi passenger experience in New York City and would enable it to be one of the world's first major metropolitan areas with a fleet that is 100% compliant with the historic Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Currently, fewer than 300 of New York City’s 13,000 yellow cabs are wheelchair accessible, putting this basic mode of city transportation out of reach for thousands of New Yorkers and visitors. By adopting the Karsan design, New York City can claim the title of the World Capital of Accessibility.

Complete with an access ramp that extends out from either side of the vehicle, wheelchair passengers, as well as riders with strollers can easily exit from the curb side at all times. In addition, the large passenger cabin features comfortable seating for four, as well as space for strollers, suitcases or shopping bags. The unique panoramic glass roof is perfectly suited to the vertical landscape of NYC, allowing passengers to admire the city’s skyscrapers as they drive through New York’s streets.

The Karsan USA taxi is the only entrant that was custom-designed to be a New York City taxi.  The competitors (from Ford and Nissan) are simply modified versions of existing commercial trucks or passenger vans. Karsan believes that the taxi passengers of New York City deserve better than this. Working with detailed passenger, owner, driver, and city government requirements, the Karsan engineers literally “started from scratch” in designing an attractive, ultra-functional, safe, and “green” vehicle that matches the dynamic image of New York City as the world’s most forward-thinking metropolis.