Tel Aviv Municipal launched its car-sharing initiative that will allow road users to access 260 shared vehicles within the city limits, in an effort to reduce traffic congestion, air pollution and car ownership.
“Auto-Tel” the new car-sharing service which was unveiled in January 2017 will be operated by Israeli based Shamir Group’s startup CAR2GO (not to be confused with Daimler’s car-sharing service car2go).
Tel-Aviv municipal has allocated 520 parking bays across the city for Auto-Tel’s car-sharing vehicles. Subscribers of Auto-Tel will be able to pick-up or drop-off the shared vehicle at the designated parking bays or at a blue-and-white street parking spot.
To gain access to Auto-Tel car-sharing service, users will need to pay a monthly subscription fee of $13. Usage fees will be charged by the minutes. At the time of Auto-Tel’s launch, Officials said the usage fee has yet to be finalised, however they promised that fees will be affordable, about 30 percent cheaper than taxis. One of the plus point about Auto-Tel is there will be no time limit on the usage of the shared vehicle.
“This is our way of reducing traffic congestion and air pollution, but it also reduces the cost of living in the city. In Israel, a (car-sharing) project like this is important because 20 percent of the time – Sabbaths and holidays – there’s no public transportation” said Mayor Ron Huldai.
“car owners could save up to $780 a month on their car expenses”
“The age of private cars is coming to an end. There isn’t enough room on the road for all these egotistical vehicles. The solution is only public and shared transportation and bicycle paths – and that’s what we are doing”
Tel-Aviv now joins a handful of city municipals around the world that invests in a city-wide car-sharing fleet. Tel Aviv municipal also pioneered the highly popular city-wide bicycle-sharing service Tel-O-Fun.
more from nocamels.com, Haaretz
Photo credit: nocamels.com
City Municipals and Car-sharing Service Providers
Car-sharing, an important component in urban mobility increases mobility for community members to reach destinations otherwise inaccessible by public transit, walking or biking. Car-sharing services tend to be initiated and operated by non-profit organisations or private car-sharing startups such as Zipcar. Through RFPs, elected officials can encourage car-sharing services to locate in their city. Depending on the car-sharing structure, city planning and zoning departments can help to integrate the program within existing public transportation plans in order to meet mobility and accessibility needs for all residents in a city.
read more: Sustainable cities Institute – car sharing