Birmingham trials congestion-busting car sharing scheme

BIRMINGHAM is to become the UK centre for trials of new car sharing schemes which allow motorists to collect and ‘drop off’ vehicles when and where needed throughout the city.

Birmingham City Council is to enter an agreement with specialist car share supplier, car2go, to pilot a scheme which will allow motorists to rent vehicles for short trips within the city, without being tied to a limited number of pick-up or drop-off points.

The project will build on a scheme already being trialled in the city with car share supplier City Car Club, which provides a number of vehicles available to the public for short term rental from and to specified popular locations.

Cllr Timothy Huxtable, Cabinet Member for Transport, Environment and Regeneration, said: “Birmingham is committed to developing a wide range of green and public transport initiatives to reduce both traffic congestion and carbon emissions within the city, and then country at large.
 
“Through these projects we are keen to explore the potential that short term car share schemes may have, alongside improvements to public transport and walking/cycling links, in removing the traditional reliance on bringing cars into the city centre every day.”

The car2go pilot is scheduled to start in the autumn. It will provide car2go members with access to a fleet of up to 250 two-seater Smart fortwo ‘car2go edition’ vehicles.
The cars are specially developed for carsharing and can be rented spontaneously inside an operating area of around 50 square kilometres of Birmingham.

“We are proud to be chosen to build up Birmingham’s first fully-flexible carsharing service,” said Robert Henrich, chief executive of car2go.

“Winning this important bid shows, that car2go is ready to quickly expand its service in forward-thinking cities which require an innovative mobility solution complementing their existing transportation infrastructure.”

car2go users will have complete freedom with regard to when they start their journey and how long they keep the vehicles without a mandatory return location. Unlike traditional carsharing programs or car rental companies, the car2go vehicles will not be parked at fixed stations but can be located at any legal public parking space.

car2go is paying a monthly fee to the city council to cover the cost of any on-street parking and selected off-street spots operated by the city.

The scheme is specially made for short trips in urban areas. Customers will only be charged for the actual use of the vehicle, with rental periods as short as a per-minute basis. The rental prices and further details regarding the Birmingham launch will be announced in due course.

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