Making Car Sharing and Car Clubs Work - Case ... - The Civil Service

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MAKING CAR SHARING AND CAR CLUBS WORKCASE STUDY SUMMARIESwhilst a local publican has provided free parking for three of the Club’s cars in his pub carpark.User perceptions18.39 Four Club members were interviewed. They were all very supportive of the Club. They allbelieved it offered good value-for-money and had reduced their overall expenditure on travelcosts. All of them reported greater use of walking and public transport. The option to choosethe right kind of transport for each journey was seen as a real advantage. For some, themove away from car ownership was a surprisingly life-enhancing experience, resulting inless stress, improvements in family life and more community involvement.18.40 There were comments about the public perception of car clubs. The confusion between carclubs and car sharing was seen as a problem, leading some potential members to ignore allof the car club publicity because they assume it is to do with car sharing.18.41 The assumption that car clubs are for green activists and are in some way a second-classform of car use was also seen as a hurdle. For these reasons the group believed that theClub needed to provide good quality cars, a high quality service and be marketed as anaspirational choice. Most members thought the choice of cars locally was good and coveredtheir needs.18.42 The main advantages of car club membership was seen as:The right car for each journey: the Astra estate car for a trip to IKEA; the Zafira for afamily day out; and the Corsa for evening meetings.Access to a car without the hassle of ownership.The ability to choose other forms of transport besides the car for many journeys,because the home transport budget has not already been spent on the car.More journeys on foot, as you are not tempted to get into the car for a short journey justbecause it is there.Final V1.1, Dec. 2004 - 104 -
MAKING CAR SHARING AND CAR CLUBS WORKCASE STUDY SUMMARIESReduced expenditure on travel overall.No worries about on-street parking, no arguments with neighbours and no damage toyour car.18.43 These members already understood and supported the thinking behind car clubs, and wereconcerned about local congestion and environmental issues. Despite this, the prospect ofnot having access to a car, was the major barrier to giving up their second car or their onlyhousehold car. The availability of the car club has allowed them to make the change andreduce their car mileage overall.18.44 The problems that members had with the Club were seen as minor. Two of the intervieweeshad experienced some difficulties with the in-car technology and the internet when they firstjoined, in particular, failing to log off correctly and problems accessing the web-based Drive-IT booking system. One family has members with an allergy to dogs and cats and would likeeither a ban on dogs in the cars or that dogs can only be carried if they sit on a blanket thatshould be removed by the owner at the end of the journey. This family has had to valet thecar on several occasions when they have used the car after one particular dog owner.18.45 Club members were concerned that the target for financial viability in 2005 was unrealistic,especially when they compared it with the slow growth experienced by rural car clubs inother parts of Europe. The development in Colne Valley has been heavily dependent on theenthusiasm and skills of the local Coordinator, supported by active Club members. It wouldbe unrealistic to expect an individual volunteer or group of volunteers to undertake theworkload or to have the necessary skills mix to undertake the Coordinator’s role.18.46 One member put forward the view that in rural areas the public transport system was oftenpoor or non-existent in the evenings and on Sundays and that services at these times wereheavily subsidised by the local authority. Subsidising the development and running of a carclub in these areas could be cost-effective, as car club members make more use of existingpublic transport and local people would not necessarily have to own a car just to makeevening and weekend journeys and those journeys that require interchange.Other general issues18.47 One user raised the issue of using a car club car for work-related evening meetings. Thisuser would like to be able to reclaim the cost from the NHS, his employer, but no mechanismexists for him to do this at present. This family also raised the point that if governmentfundedbodies used car club cars as pool cars, this could increase utilisation of the vehiclesand make them more commercially viable in rural areas. Options put forward for increasingusage were for social services staff and for the cars to be used as voluntary car schemevehicles taking patients to GP surgeries.18.48 Cultural attachment to cars was also raised as an issue, with examples of local residentswho did not use their car very often, but felt the need to have a high-value car that reflectedthere status. There was some discussion about whether some car clubs, particularly those inurban areas, would attract more members if some high-status cars were included in the fleet,or whether the cost would act as a deterrent.Final V1.1, Dec. 2004 - 105 -
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