Daniel Rotto was there when the first two cabs belonging to Hometown Taxi rolled onto the streets of Decorah, Iowa, in October 1987. Both were 1979 Honda CVCCs, and Rotto was one of the founding owners of the business behind them, alongside Jon Rotto, Steve McCargar, and John Condon. Nearly four decades later, he is still listed among the owner-drivers of Hometown Taxi, and the fleet he helped start has taken a new step.
In December 2024, Hometown Taxi bought its first electric vehicle, a used 2022 Hyundai Ioniq 5. The decision was a practical one. The partners picked the car with their riders in mind, charged it in their own shop, and started with short trips close to home.
Photo Courtesy Hometown Taxi
Before the Ioniq 5 arrived, Hometown Taxi covered local rides and regional trips to cities such as Iowa City and Des Moines, Iowa, Rochester, Minnesota, and Madison, Wisconsin, with five Toyota Priuses and a hybrid Toyota Sienna.
Over several years, the partners worked with the Energy District and compared a long list of models, including the Chevrolet Bolt, Chevrolet Equinox EV, Ford Mustang Mach-E, Kia EV6, and Tesla Model Y. They held off for a while because of questions about range, battery life, and charging.
The Ioniq 5 won out because of its cabin. Its tall interior, generous space, and flat floor make it easier for older passengers to climb in and out, the District explained, and many of the company’s riders are elderly.
Timing helped, too. According to the District, falling prices for used electric vehicles lowered the stakes of trying one. Cox Automotive data shows the average listing price for a used EV fell to $37,341 in November 2024, down 10.3% from a year earlier.
To keep the car ready, Hometown Taxi installed a Level 2 charger at its heated shop. The Ioniq 5 recharges fully overnight. Parking indoors helps limit range loss during northeast Iowa winters and keeps the cabin warm, and the car’s heat pump cabin heater also helps hold range in the cold.
The partners assigned the Ioniq 5 to local trips in and around Decorah, taking over in-town runs from one of the older Priuses. The hybrids handled longer runs to cities such as Iowa City and Des Moines, while the Level 3 DC fast charger buildout was still underway in rural Iowa.
The regional picture has shifted since then. In March 2025, Hyundai opened access to 20,000 Tesla Superchargers in the United States for Ioniq 5 owners using an adapter. Closer to home, by July 2025, Decorah had 16 public Level 2 chargers and four direct current (DC) fast chargers located at Decorah Chevrolet and Alliant Energy’s new facility in the city.
Photo Courtesy Hyundai
The Energy District that advised the partners has local roots. It launched in 2010 as the nation’s first county-wide energy district, modeled on the soil and water conservation districts that farmers have long relied on, Iowa Farm Bureau reported in 2017. Similarly, it aims to help people conserve energy and generate more local renewable energy. Andy Johnson, the District’s founding director, said at the time that the goal was “to find ways to keep more of the dollars that we spend on energy working in our own communities instead of flowing out. The dollars that are saved on energy, or used to pay local contractors, then can help create local economic development.”
For Hometown Taxi, that first car was a test. The Energy District described the company’s approach as “cautious but forward-thinking.” At the time, the District wrote that it was too early to judge long-term performance, and the partners planned to watch how the Ioniq 5 fit into daily operations before trying it on longer trips. “For now, the Ioniq 5represents a significant step in reducing their vehicle fleet’s emissions while continuing to serve northeast Iowa in a community-focused way,” it concluded.
That pace suits a company that measures success in rides given, not headlines.
Photo Courtesy Hometown Taxi
Hometown Taxi is a worker-owned partnership. The company says 24 partners have worked with the business since it formed in September 1987, and its current drivers bring more than a century of combined experience to the job. It is an accredited Medicaid transportation provider, and its drivers complete state defensive driving, first aid, and passenger assistance training.
Its fares are set with older riders and riders with disabilities in mind. Decorah residents age 60 and older receive $1.50 off each ride, and riders with a disability can apply for a $2.00 discount per ride.
That commitment has held through hard stretches. When COVID-19 forced the company to scale back to deliveries and essential medical rides in March 2020, partner Scot Idstrom told KVIK radio that “since the fall of 1987, Hometown Taxi has been open every week in every type of weather to serve our community with safe and friendly transportation to work, to medical appointments, to grocery stores, and to social events.” When the festival returned in 2021 after a canceled 2020, Nordic Fest named Hometown Taxi its Grand Marshal, an honor the organizers reserve for outstanding community service.
The business Rotto helped start with two small Hondas put an electric car on its in-town route in December 2024, and the riders it was chosen for are the neighbors Hometown Taxi has been driving since 1987.
