KOZHIKODE: The pink and white “She Taxis” will hit city roads in January.

The project has been hanging fire due to dearth of suitable women drivers , according to official sources. But it now seems to be at last on its way, going by a press release of the district administration.

The women drivers have been trained in personal safety and road behaviour and have also received valuable driving tips from experts.

While several women enrolled for the project, only five have managed to make it to the final list. “We expected more bold women, but only a few have proved fit for the job , delaying the project,” said officials.

“Though the project will be viable only if there are more than 10 taxis on the road, we have decided to launch it anyway,” said Mr PTM Sunish, Chief Executive Officer of the project, adding, “We expect more women to come forward once the existing team proves its mettle.”

While Thiruvananthapuram has 25 She Taxis, Kochi has less than 10. The project is however expected to be a big success in the Malalabar where many NRI wives live alone and will be happy to use a woman driven cab.

Either the State Women Development Corporation or nationalised banks will finance the women buying vehicles to run as taxis. They will have to meet only 10 per cent of the total cost as the rest will be provided as loan from the financing agency.

The other associates of the project include Maruti Suzuki Ltd, which is supplying the customised pink and white taxis and the Techno park-based Rain Concert Technologies, which is handling the fleet operations and marketing.

The project has been drawn up under Thantedam Gender Park, an initiative of the department of social justice.