Business embraces car sharing

Businesses embrace sharing

Cityhop, NZ’s first car share is over 18 months old and since it launched in August 2007 many dozens of individuals and businesses have joined up to take advantage of sharing a car.

“Car share is accepted as one the “missing links” in any urban transportation system especially for a fast-growing urban centre faced with increasingly clogged arteries,” says Victoria Carter, former Auckland City Councillor and now CEO and founder of NZ’s first car share Cityhop.

“Car sharing helps people kick the car-owning habit, without going cold turkey, and offers the financial reward of saving them money,” she adds.

“We have a number of businesses who have signed up to cityhop and encourage their staff to car share rather than taxi. In fact one of our clients has a policy taxi to Newmarket but any further must be a car share journey because of the cost savings.”

“We have found some companies have joined us rather than add another fleet car. It’s more affordable and enables a company to really see the true use of the ‘wheels. It also means they can add it to the list of sustainable activities that they do.”

Car share is the new wave. Since December 2008 at least 5 new car share companies have started up around the world, including two in New York making a total of five for the Big Apple. Last week Israel launched a car share company and recently in Japan a car share company sold for several billion YEN.

Victoria Carter observes that engineers and architects appear to be the fastest to accept a new idea like car share with professional firms like Maunsell, Ignite and Swan Reilley being early adapters.

Isthmus, a leading nationwide urban design and landscape architecture practice joined Cityhop this week. Director Gavin Lister decided to give up his corporate car park and instead make it available for a Cityhop car park.

Says Mr Lister, “At Isthmus we frequently need a car during the day to attend meetings with clients or make site visits. I use public transport to get to and from work.

“Using Cityhop enables us to encourage staff to walk, cycle or use public transport to get to work while still having convenient access to a car during the day. Professional service firms generally include travel costs in disbursements, so we are able to pass on the very reasonable cost of Cityhop transport to our clients.

“We expect our relationship with Cityhop to be convenient, economical and a positive move for environmental sustainability.”

Maunsell, the engineers, were one of the first company’s to sign up to have a dedicated car share car for their staff to use for business and personal use. The car can be used as ‘emergency wheels and a guaranteed ride home through its travel workplace plan’ and also in place of taxis or less fuel efficient manager’s cars. In addition they also have cityhop cards so their staff can use cars at other sites when their own cityhop car is in use.

Says, Richard Garrett, NZ Marketing Manager, Maunsell Ltd, “Cityhop offers our staff an easy to use transport option and is showing real leadership in the drive to reduce New Zealand’s carbon-footprint.

“Maunsell’s involvement with Cityhop has been an exciting and positive experience. We are supporting a great eco-focused initiative which aligns with our values, ends Mr Garrett.

“International research (Source US Transportation Board) shows that members shed cars. Over 40 per cent of Zipcar members in the USA decided against buying a car and often ended up selling a car,” says Mrs Carter

“Car share members drive less – Car usage by individuals reduced by as much as 50 per cent after they joined car share.

“We know from talking to our members that once they join cityhop they start to think about what is the most efficient means of transportation for their task – walking, biking, public transport, taxi or car share,” she ended.

Cityhop has 20 cars in car parks in the Auckland CBD, Parnell and Newmarket, 2 cars in Wellington and 1 in Christchurch. More cars will be added to the fleet as demand dictates.

www.cityhop.co.nz

ENDS

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