Autocar UK – 28 August 2019

16 AUTOCAR.CO.UK 28 AUGUST 2019

f car ownership levels

stay as they are now, the

UK isn’t going to fulfil its

climate change promises.

That was the conclusion

reached by MPs from the

Science and Technology

Committee last week.

Even electric cars aren’t

seen as a panacea to the

problem, mainly because

factories would pump out

too much CO 2 to replace

c a r s a t th e ra te we c u r r e ntl y

buy them. The committee’s

recommendations were pretty

scary for any car owner. “In the

long term, widespread personal

vehicle ownership does not

appear to be compatible with

significant decarbonisation,”

its report said.

However, not all motoring

came under attack. Car-share

schemes emerged from the

report as the one long-term

option that keeps a lid on CO 2

output, mainly because they’re

compatible with electric

technology but also because,

according to research from the

BMW and Daimler Share Now

service, a single shared car can

replace about eight private cars.

The Society of Motor

Manufacturers and Traders

told the committee that “a

clear shift from traditional

vehicle ownership to usership

has emerged in recent years”,

pointing out that car makers

are already exploring car-share

programmes.

Car-share schemes (or

car clubs) are increasing

in popularity in the UK.

T h e n u m b e r of c a r s i n su c h

schemes has gone from 3188

in 2015 to 5385 this year and

membership has climbed

from under 200,000 to just

over 350,000, according to

research from CoMoUK.

Of those cars, a whopping

60% are based in London,

where the big players such as

Avis Group’s Zipcar, Enterprise

Car Club and BMW’s DriveNow

operate. It makes sense. It’s

more expensive and more

hassle to own a car in a big

city, where there are plenty of

other transport options. Zipcar

said it has 270,000 members

in London, making it the US-

owned brand’s biggest market.

Rates start at 29p per minute

but various plans are available.

Manufacturers are also

dipping a toe in the water.

The two longest-standing

operations – DriveNow from

BMW and Car2Go from

Daimler – are in the process of

combining to create ShareNow.

Volkswagen launched WeShare

in June with an electric-only

car fleet, starting in Berlin with

1500 e-Golfs. The PSA Group

also offers car sharing under

its Free2Move mobility brand,

although in the UK it offers cars

via business contract hire only.

The business of car sharing

is hard work, though. BMW and

Daimler are pooling resources

partly because their global

car-share operations weren’t

consistently profitable.

The business is far more

complicated than just selling

cars because local conditions

are so varied and the obstacles

not immediately apparent.

Despite coming to London

in 2014, DriveNow even

now operates in only nine of

London’s 33 boroughs, mainly

because it has to negotiate

parking with each one.

Daimler’s Car2Go quit London

in 2014 and hasn’t returned.

More recently, Zipcar left

Brussels, citing the high rates

of car ownership there.

It’s also hard to imagine

these schemes replacing car

ownership outside of urban

areas, where population

d e n s i t y i s s o m u c h l e s s.

But car makers are

persisting. In the three years

from the start of 2016 to

the end of 2018, $48 billion

(£39bn) worth of investments

in the shared mobility sector,

including ride-hailing firms

s u c h a s U b e r, h av e b e e n t ra c ke d

by analytics firm GlobalData.

“Consumers are becoming

ever more comfortable with

the concept of having access

to a shared product without

the financial burden of private

ownership,” Mike Vousden,

automotive analyst at

GlobalData, said.

The pain now is worth the

prize (much) later – that of

autonomous ride hailing.

Daimler’s and BMW’s company

will combine ride hailing,

car sharing, parking and

EV charging in preparation

for the day that self-driving

technology will, they hope,

pour billions into their coffers

as we remotely whistle up

autonomous cars.

Even before that, there

are benefits outside of the

rental income. More and more

ride-hailing firms are operating

electric cars and that’s great

for dragging down company

CO 2 levels and reducing the

chance of having to pay a fine

under the EU’s 2020 CO 2

emissions rules.

“I see the manufacturers’

car-sharing fleets as a highly

calculated strategic move in

helping them over the 2020/

CO 2 finish line. They have in

effect created their own fleet

sales channel,” said Berlin-

based automotive analyst

Matthias Schmidt. “Just turn

the taps on when required.” He

cites WeShare, which, VW has

said, will also feature the new

ID 3 when it arrives next year,

as well as 200 Moia electric

ride-hailing vans, which will be

registered as cars.

To hope that the bulk of

private car ownership could

be replaced by shared cars

outside of Britain’s cities is

a pipe dream, but for urban

dwellers, it’s fast becoming a

useful addition to a widening

range of transport options.

NICK GIBBS

Will sharing replace owning?

DriveNow operates

i n j u st n i n e of th e 33

boroughs in London

MPs and manufacturers believe car sharing will cut CO 2 and its popularity is rising

D Car-share programmes from these firms make most sense in cities

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