A TEAM of Australian designers is in line to revolutionise New York City's iconic taxi service.

A futuristic electric taxi known as the Unicab is being considered for a lucrative commission to serve the Big Apple from 2014, The Daily Telegraph reports.

The team behind the cutting-edge cab has made a pitch to supply the city with 26,500 taxis over 10 years as part of a major overhaul of New York's yellow cab service.

Using a concept from Melbourne's award-winning RMIT student designer Damian Lucaciu, the team grabbed ideas from clean-air experts and the NSW Disability Council's founder Jacob Baldwin before coming up with a prototype that fits city officials' long list of criteria.

The Australian design is one of five featured on New York's Taxi of Tomorrow campaign website.

The city's Taxi and Limousine Commission has been collecting proposals since December, dangling the promise of a monopoly to supply cars to one of the world's most recognized cab fleets.

What do you think of the design? Tell us below.

The Unicab boasts open space, low floors, a ramp for the disabled and seats for up to seven passengers.

Renderings show the front passenger seat is spun around, letting a rider face friends as they rumble around the city.

And highly visible LED screens on the outside front windshield would inform potential passengers where the cab is headed and how many seats are available to facilitate ride-sharing.

New York City's current cab fleet is served by 19 different vehicle models which are made by nine different manufacturers.

There are 13,000 taxis in the city at present, but the new supplier will be asked to make twice that number.

The company awarded the contract will make a fortune as it will be the sole cab supplier to the city for 10 years.

Taxi and Limousine Commissioner (TLC) David Yassky said those pitching for the job have to prove they have got the gear to make and support their design.

"The 'Taxi of Tomorrow' sets a high bar for the vehicle that will carry us into the future, and it will challenge people to put their manufacturing know-how where their imagination is," TLC commissioner David Lassy said.

City officials will pick the winner by October.



See more pictures of the design at The Daily Telegraph.