The Greek government has unveiled a new initiative, “Zap Taxi Club,” aimed at increasing the number of electric taxis in Athens tenfold to at least 1,000 units by 2026. This effort builds upon previous initiatives to promote electric taxis in the capital.
According to media reports, the government officially presented the “Zap Taxi Club” initiative, addressing the current shortfall in electric taxi adoption. Currently, only about 100 of the 13,661 taxis in Athens are electric, highlighting the limited impact of the ‘Green Taxi’ funding programme introduced in 2023, which runs until 2025.
To tackle this issue, the state is launching the “Zap Taxi Club” programme, a public-private partnership managed by the National Bank of Greece. The programme provides taxi drivers with additional funding through leasing options, supplementing the existing ‘Green Taxi’ subsidies. These subsidies cover up to 40% of the cost of a new electric taxi, with a maximum cap of 22,500 euros. The new initiative offers discounted leasing conditions to make electric taxis more accessible. The funding for this initiative comes from the EU’s Recovery and Resilience Fund, with the condition that old vehicles must be scrapped in return.
“The National Bank of Greece is proud to support the ‘Zap Taxi Club’ initiative, providing taxi drivers with the financial tools they need to transition to electric vehicles,” a bank representative stated.
In addition to the focus on taxis, the Greek government is also committed to broader electromobility efforts. A separate programme is currently providing 28 million euros in subsidies for private individuals to purchase electric cars.
