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New York City’s familiar yellow taxi cabs’ days are numbered. By 2012 every one of the 13,000 Ford Crown Victoria sedans will be replaced by hybrids.

Concerns over air quality and global warming have prompted New York to introduce legislation curbing greenhouse gases under a wide-ranging initiative. By 2030, it will cut emissions by 30 per cent.

New York mayor Michael Bloomberg said: “Implementing tougher standards for the taxis in this city will provide the same clean air benefits as removing 32,000 privately owned cars from our streets – it will significantly reduce air pollution.”

The plan tackles emissions from all sources, but road transport contributes 50 per cent. One of the measures raises minimum fuel economy requirements for cabs to 25mpg from October 2008, increasing to 30mpg the following year. The current Crown Victoria has a 4.6 litre V8 as standard and manages just 14mpg.

The city thinks hybrids are the way forward. It has seven models on the current approved list, ranging from the Toyota Prius to the latest Saturn Vue SUV.

New York’s taxi and limousine commissioner Matthew Daus said: “These standards will save 22 million gallons of fuel in the first year.” But that is only the beginning: Daus expects carbon emission reductions of 195,000 tonnes when standards are fully implemented.

New York already has 375 hybrid cabs in service, including 288 Ford Escapes. The SUV combines a 70kW AC motor, 99kW 2.3-litre four-cylinder engine and CVT transmission to achieve 34mpg.

Ford says that over 100,000 miles – the typical annual mileage of a New York taxi – the Escape will save 1,666 gallons of fuel. If popularity of the model increases, it should partially offset the drop in Crown Victoria sales. Ford sold 62,976 in 2006, almost all to law enforcement agencies and taxi firms.

Other cities might follow New York’s example. Chicago and San Francisco have small hybrid fleets. Los Angeles has already converted much of its taxi fleet over to CNG but is now considering a switch to hybrids.