Zipcar and the City of New York Announce Two Major Initiatives to Reduce Personal Car Ownership and Increase Access to Car Sharing

NEW YORK, May 31, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Zipcar, the world’s leading car-sharing network, and the City of New York, today announced two major initiatives that will soon make car sharing available in more neighborhoods and to more individuals throughout the city while reducing the need for personal vehicle ownership. 

Through participation in the Department of Transportation (NYC DOT) car-sharing pilot, Zipcar will expand its presence in New York City to 116 on-street and municipal parking lot locations consisting of 228 parking spaces dedicated specifically for Zipcars. The vehicles will be available throughout the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens and parked in municipal parking facilities and dedicated on-street parking spots for convenient pick-up and drop-off.

Zipcar also announced a separate partnership with the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), the largest public housing authority in North America, that will soon provide NYCHA residents with more accessible and cost-effective transportation options right where they live. Through the partnership, 24 Zipcars will be available for reservation at 11 NYCHA properties, making NYCHA one of the first public housing entities in the U.S. to offer car sharing for residents. Zipcar is offering discounted memberships for NYCHA residents and discounted hourly driving rates on all vehicles located at NYCHA developments.

“At Zipcar, we’re committed to making cities better places to live and that starts with increasing access to smart mobility solutions that reduce reliance on personal cars,” said Tracey Zhen, Zipcar president. “Thanks to the support of Mayor de Blasio, Commissioner Trottenberg and Interim Chair Brezenoff, we will be able to provide more New Yorkers with access to ‘wheels when they want them,’ both in neighborhoods currently served by Zipcar as well as new areas where Zipcar will launch for the first time.”

New on-street locations will be located in the following neighborhoods:

Additionally, Zipcar vehicles can soon be found in the following municipal parking facilities: 

Zipcars will be located on site at the following NYCHA properties:

Reservations can be made by the hour or by the day on Zipcar’s mobile app, online or over the phone and include the cost of gas, maintenance, insurance and 180 miles of driving per day.

Impact of Zipcar Car Sharing in New York
Studies show that Zipcar reduces personal vehicle ownership in cities across the globe, including New York City. According to a survey of Zipcar members conducted in January 2018, 42 percent of members have postponed purchasing a vehicle because of Zipcar, and 31 percent would buy a vehicle if Zipcar did not exist. The study estimates that, due to the low-car lifestyle Zipcar enables, there are 64,000 fewer personally owned vehicles on New York City streets. Since Zipcar was founded, its service has taken away the need for more than 400,000 personal vehicles worldwide.ⁱ

Zipcar first launched in New York in 2002 and has since grown its fleet to more than 2,900 vehicles in more than 1,000 locations across the region, including every city borough and several surrounding communities, such as Hoboken, Jersey City, the Hamptons and New Haven. In February 2017, Zipcar and Governor Cuomo announced a partnership to make Zipcars available along Metro-North Railroad stations, offering a convenient and economical transportation option for those traveling upstate. The partnership has since expanded to 16 stations along the Harlem, Hudson, New Haven and Pascack Valley lines.

New York area residents can join online at www.zipcar.com and reserve on the Zipcar mobile app, online or over the phone. More information on the NYC DOT pilot program can be found at www.nycdotcarshare.info. More information about the NYCHA partnership can be found at www.zipcar.com/NYCHA.

About Zipcar
Zipcar is the world’s leading car-sharing network, driven by a mission to enable simple and responsible urban living. With its wide variety of self-service vehicles available by the hour or day, Zipcar operates in urban areas and university campuses in over 500 cities and towns across Belgium, Canada, Costa Rica, France, Iceland, Spain, Taiwan, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States. Zipcar offers the most comprehensive, most convenient and most flexible car-sharing options available. Zipcar is a subsidiary of Avis Budget Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:CAR), a leading global provider of mobility solutions. More information is available at www.zipcar.com.

Media Contact:
Katelyn Chesley
Public Relations Manager, Zipcar
kchesley@zipcar.com
617.678.7206

ⁱ Calculation is based on a study from Susan Shaheen, Ph.D., Co-Director, Transportation Sustainability Research Center, UC Berkeley, which shows that each Zipcar takes up to 13 personally owned vehicles off the road.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/e3dda09c-b594-4052-b6d8-73052e104fb6