CAR SHARING COMPANY REVS UP IN THE TWIN CITIES

In Business, March-April, 2005, Vol. 27, No. 2, p. 29

Minneapolis-St. Paul joins over 25 other organizations and firms offering members a way to get to meetings, attend events, etc. without buying a vehicle.

RESIDENTS in the St. Paul- Minneapolis area will soon be able to reserve cars by the hour with a company called HourCar, part of the very effective Neighborhood Energy Consortium. The cars will be 2005 Toyota Priuses, hybrids that will allow members to get around in comfort, style and economy, while saving on gas and producing very few air pollutants.
“We're very excited to bring car-sharing to the Twin Cities in locations like Uptown, Loring Park and Lowertown,” says Kurt Fischer, HourCar Program Coordinator based in St. Paul. “The first hubs will be convenient for both neighborhood residents and downtown businesses.”
As explained in last issue's report, “Car Sharing Industry Shows Why You Don't Need To Own A Car,” if you drive less than 7,500 miles a year and don't need a car for work every day, car sharing can save you thousands of dollars annually. Car-sharing members reserve cars by the hour from their local “hub” and are billed monthly. The locations have a number of features that make them excellent - dense housing, mixed use development, good pedestrian culture and some parking scarcity.
Some car-sharing members give up their own cars, and others continue to live without owning a car, but with added convenience. Businesses use the service in place of company cars or mileage reimbursements - employees can check out HourCars to get to meetings or run work errands during the day. The fleet will expand steadily over the summer, doubling in size to 12 new cars by August. (Visit www.HOURCAR.org.)
The Neighborhood Energy Consortium (NEC) is a 19-year-old nonprofit organization that promotes sustainable communities. The NEC conducts residential energy audits and insulation programs, advises on energy efficient construction, offers energy improvement loans and produces Minnesota's largest recreational bike ride, the St. Paul Classic Bike Tour.
NEC received seed funding for its launch of HourCar from the federal government, Hennepin County, state Office of Environmental Assistance and the Saint Paul Foundation. Congresswoman Betty McCollum, Senators Norm Coleman and Mark Dayton, and Congressman James Oberstar led efforts at the federal level to secure a $275,000 appropriation. “I am pleased to have succeeded in securing federal funding for this investment in our transportation future,”said Congresswoman McCollum. “This innovative program provides creative transportation solutions to ease congestion, improve air quality and make transportation opportunities more accessible to everyone, benefiting our entire community.” Locally Commissioner Peter McLaughlin obtained a $50,000 pledge from Hennepin County, and the Saint Paul Foundation contributed $25,000.
Members will reserve cars through the HourCar website or by phone. The electronically secured cars will be stationed at parking ramps or on lots located within a short walk, bike, or transit ride of the members' homes and workplaces.
Members will pay for services through monthly membership dues and vehicle usage fees. Members who opt to pay $5/month dues can use the vehicle at a rate of $6.95/hour plus $0.45/mile.
Alternatively, members may choose to pay higher monthly dues of $20 along with lower usage rates of $4.95/hour plus $0.39/mile. “Our unique dual rate structure allows members to choose the plan that will save them the most money,” points out Fischer.” HourCar pays for everything else - fuel, insurance, maintenance - everything.”
To maximize participation and to ensure community benefits, the car sharing company is working closely with the cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Metro Commuter Services, neighborhood groups such as the Uptown Association, Citizens for a Loring Park Community and the Capitol River Council, and several Twin Cities Transportation Management Organizations, housing developers, and local elected officials.
Mary Morse, Executive Director of the NEC, notes that “What makes HourCar unique among car-sharing services worldwide is our emphasis on environmental benefits. Our signature vehicle - the Toyota Prius - is known for its fuel efficiency and that it emits up to 90 percent fewer pollutants than the average new vehicle.” HourCar will work with researchers at the University of Minnesota's Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs to evaluate the impact of HourCar on the Twin Cities.
Independent researchers have documented the benefits of car-sharing in the San Francisco Bay area where City CarShare (CCS), the nation's largest nonprofit car-sharing organization operates. CCS members are driving fewer miles, generating less pollution, consuming less gasoline, increasing their use of transit, and biking more since joining CCS.

PROGRAMS IN NORTH AMERICA
As reported on the Car Sharing network (www.carsharing.net), the idea first surfaced in the late 1980s in Switzerland and Germany, coming to North America via Quebec City in 1993. Based on December, 2004 data, there were 15 U.S. carsharing programs with more than 61,000 members and 11 Canadian programs with almost 11,000 members.
The network data provides these details on sponsoring organization, year launched, members and vehicles for the following cities:
Berkeley, California - City CarShare, 2001, 200 members, 10 vehicles; Boston, Massachusetts - ZipCar, 2000, 4,200, 131; Boulder, Colorado - Boulder Carshare, 2000, 30, 4; Calgary, Alberta - Calgary Alternative Trans. Co-op, 2000, 9, 2; Chicago, Illinois - I-Go-Cars, 2002, 750, 16; East Bay, California - City CarShare, 2002, 100, 4; Edmonton, Alberta - Carsharing Co-op. Edmonton, 2000, 9, 1; Montreal, Quebec - CommunAuto, 1995, 5,140, 238; New York, New York - ZipCar, 2002, 1,650, 53; San Francisco, California - City CarShare, 2001, 2,000, 60; Seattle, Washington - FlexCar, 2000, 13,000, 130; Washington, DC - ZipCar, 2001, 2,200, 41.
According to Lance Ayrault, CEO of Flexcar, the company - which continues to grow at a fast pace - has a total of approximately 30,000 members nationwide in Seattle, Los Angeles, Portland, San Diego, and Washington, D.C. Total number of vehicles available to members is about 350. Rates vary from $7/hour to $9/hour, depending upon specific vehicle to be used.
As of Jan. 1, 2005, ZipCar listed a total for all of its operations of 30,000 members and 400 vehicles. The company was founded by Rob Chase and Antje Danielson in 1999. Prospective members are required to obtain a qualifying card: In most cases, cards will arrive only two business days after application, with driving records checked, etc.
U.S. drivers licenses are needed. About booking a car in advance, the company suggests that for “last minute” personalities, they suggest trying to book a car in advance when possible, but “you can always reserve minutes before you want to drive.” Zipcar accepts all major credit cards; billing is automatic and electronic. They also recommend that members try to use a credit card that provides a rental car deductible waiver (even though companies usually cover your insurance.)

MANY FORMS OF CAR SHARING
THE Ann Arbor Community Car Co-op (A2C3) is a group of Ann Arbor residents and University of Michigan students working to bring car sharing to Ann Arbor, Michigan. They explain the concept can take many forms. For-profit operations - like Zipcar.com and Flexcar.com - are able to provide large fleets of cars at a reasonable hourly rental rate. Nonprofits, some partially funded by tax dollars, are viable as well. Car sharing can even be done informally by a small group of friends who want to pool resources.
Yet, it has drawbacks. It doesn't work for people who commute to work by car, or live in places without public transportation, or who take lots of long trips, or have situations in which they absolutely must have a car with no advance warning. However, in most systems members have a car available more than 95 percent of the time.

Copyright 2007, The JG Press, Inc.