Wuhan to replace unsafe taxis after media exposure

Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei Province, has decided to replace the city's 12,000 taxis that were found to have braking problems.

The municipal government announced on Thursday that it aims to replace all the problematic cars in the downtown area by July 1, 2013.

The move follows a recent media allegation that Wuhan's 13,000-strong fleet of C-Elysee cabs, which make up over 80 percent of its taxis, are not equipped with the Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) or Electric Brakeforce Distribution (EBD) technologies that are standard parts of the vehicle's retail model.

Taxi driver Zhang Yi told Xinhua that after he replaced his old car with a C-Elysee model in 2010, he found that the brakes were hard to use and he had even lost control of the vehicle on occasion when it was raining.

After the media exposure, the municipal government launched an investigation, and the model's manufacturer, the Wuhan-based Dongfeng Peugeot Citroen Automobile, also promised that it would offer free inspections and repairs for the 13,000 C-Elysee taxis in the city.

Peng Jun, director of the Wuhan transport commission, said about 12,600 taxis will be replaced and the government will initiate a public bidding process to find suitable new car models.

The ABS and EBD prevent a car from skidding and improve its safety during emergency or quick stops, but Chinese law does not require their inclusion in new vehicles manufactured in the country.

Observers said that taxis, as a means of public transport, should have a higher safety performance than private cars, and the incident reflects the carmaker's lack of social responsibility and flawed government management of taxi operations.