The UK's most environmentally friendly car club scheme was launched in central London today in a joint venture operated by Westminster City Council and private firm Zipcar.
The car club will include a fleet of 20 hybrid vehicles, ten times more than all the other car clubs in the UK combined. It also will offer members access to the country's first all-electric car club vehicle, a Citroen C1.
Motorists also will have the chance to drive a plug-in hybrid version of Toyota's popular Prius, a Honda Insight Hybrid as well as conventional petrol cars including a BMW 318 and a Mini Cooper. Other vehicles include a VW Caddy Maxi van and a Toyota Verso people carrier.
By September, users will have access to more than 100 vehicles in locations across Westminster including Covent Garden, Mayfair, Soho, Regent's Park and Marylebone as well as a number of residential areas.
The council and Zipcar, the world's largest car club operator, are aiming to have 400 vehicles by 2012 - approximately 30 percent of which will be hybrid vehicles. These vehicles all will be located within easy walking distance of homes, offices and work places.
Members are charged under a pay as you go style tariff with hourly rates starting at £3.95 and daily rates at £39 including the congestion charge and an industry-leading 60 mile daily driving allowance.
A number of concessions are also available including one hour's free parking, no congestion charge, and a low rate annual membership fee of 25 pounds Sterling. This sum is then reimbursed with the equivalent amount of car hire time.
Westminster council's cabinet member for city management, Cllr Danny Chalkley, said: "The launch of our car club is a major step towards changing the way motorists travel within our capital and provides an environmentally friendly choice to London's pressured transport system.
"We were one of the first councils in the UK to introduce a range of financial incentives for electric vehicle owners and with this scheme we are once again demonstrating our commitment to the green agenda and recognising the potential of electric vehicles within our car sharing scheme."
Chairman and CEO of Zipcar, Scott Griffith, said: "Westminster's environmental leadership, exhibited by this new and innovative public-private partnership, takes the concept of car clubs in London to an entirely new level in terms of scale and vehicle technology.
"As the world's leading platform for evaluating alternative vehicle technologies, Zipcar is offering Westminster residents convenient and low-cost access to all-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles to encourage adoption of the most efficient and environmentally friendly cars on the planet."
Westminster Council has the largest on-street car recharging service in the UK with 14 dedicated charging points and plans to increase this number to 20 by the end of the year. There are an additional 48 charging points in the council's secure car parks.
Studies have shown that each car club vehicle removes up to 20 privately owned vehicles, and that members reduce vehicle miles travelled by up to 40 percent.
Motorists may also recognise significant savings by joining a car club with current estimates showing the average cost to run a private vehicle almost £2,500 a year.
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