MEXICO CITY – Several associations of Mexico City retailers presented Tuesday a fleet of 100 pink taxis for female drivers and passengers only as a way of stopping assaults and increasing traffic in shops.

“Angel taxis,” a name that also refers to the capital’s emblematic Angel of Independence monument, is a project of two retail groups, the Alternative Commerce for a Decent Life Association and the Legitimate Civic Commercial Association, said Graciela Coronel, leader of the first of the organizations.

The same measure was recently launched by the government of the central state of Puebla, which presented 35 pink taxis exclusively for the use of women, all with women drivers and equipped with devices to ward off attacks.

The “angel taxis” will be driven by women who have been trained for the job or who have already driven public transport vehicles, Coronel said.

The project could be expanded later in the number of taxis and also to attend the elderly.

Mayor Marcelo Ebrard’s administration has supported the creation of this fleet, Coronel said.

The pink taxis that will circulate in the Mexican capital are Nissan models Tsuru and Tiida, and the cost of their adaptation has been some 15,000 pesos ($1,100) per unit.

Other cities in the world such as London, New York, Dubai, Beirut and Moscow currently have pink taxis for women only. EFE