A Bradford University graduate is proving his green credentials after founding the first private hire taxi firm in the district which uses a fleet of eco-friendly hybrid cars.

Eco Cars was set up in Wilsden Road, Sandy Lane, Bradford, by 25-year-old Vakas Khalid and his business partner and uncle, Wajid Yasin, five weeks ago.

It is already proving a success after winning two major contracts with Bradford Council and customers who are using the service because they want to reduce their carbon foot-print, said Mr Khalid.

He spent about £15,000, donated by friends and family and from his own savings, to start the venture in an office owned by dad Khalid Mahmood.

Mr Khalid and Mr Yasin, 41, now employ three drivers who use Toyota Prius hybrid cars which are powered by petrol and electric technology. The cars cost £15 in road tax, are cheap to insure and travel 80miles on just £10 of fuel.

Mr Khalid said the savings made on operating the vehicles are being passed on to the company’s customers.

He said: “We set up Eco Cars using the Prius because they are the lowest carbon emission car there is.

“It is also cheaper, so we are slightly cheaper than anybody else.

“We came up with the idea because we knew that there are hundreds of taxi companies in Bradford, so we wanted to do something unique and to give people who use taxis for a lot of journeys the choice to cut their carbon emissions.”

The business is run from an office which has been fully refurbished using eco-friendly materials, including heat-saving wall tiles.

Mr Khalid said the savings meant that customers would be paying on average 30p less for the first mile than most other operators in Bradford.

He said Eco Cars had already won two school run contracts with Bradford Council. He said: “Since we launched, it has been going fantastically well. We didn’t expect to get such a good response but we have had to use taxi drivers from other businesses to cover jobs because it has been so popular. People have believed in this idea and have lent us money. They are all going to be future partners because this is growing bigger and bigger”

For further information, call Eco Cars on (01274) 499956.