Around 85 per cent of UK car club members already based in London
New plan will help reach new joint target of one million London car club members by 2025
Future growth of car clubs will help improve London’s air quality and reduce congestion in the Capital
A new ‘strategy for car clubs’ in London has been launched today (21 May), to encourage residents and businesses across the capital to sign up to car club schemes as an alternative to direct car ownership.
The new action plan, jointly developed by1466 Transport for London (TfL), London Councils, the Greater London Authority (GLA), a coalition of car club operators and key stakeholders, aims to grow car clubs into a mainstream alternative to the private car for essential car journeys in London. The group claims this will help to address a number of challenges faced in the coming years, including population growth, congestion and environmental issues.
London is already one of the leading car club cities in Europe – 85 per cent of UK car club members are in the capital - and the new action plan will help take this further by developing and promoting car clubs and setting an example for other global cities to follow. Encouraging further use of car clubs was a key recommendation from the Mayor’s Roads Task Force, which was set up in July 2012 to help deliver a template for world-class streets and roads fit for the future.
London’s roads are already under pressure, and maintaining a highly functioning road network is central to ensure it retains its position as a world renowned economic capital. Research by the4961 RAC Foundation has shown that the average city dweller’s car is only used for 4.6 hours a week, meaning that the vehicle is actually parked for 97 per cent of the time. With London’s population forecast to grow to 10 million by 2031, potentially bringing thousands more cars on the road in the next decade, car clubs are a part of the solution to address this.
Car clubs already have on-street parking bays in 27 of the 33 London boroughs and many boroughs have incorporated them into their transport infrastructure in innovative ways. However, low awareness of the schemes remains a key barrier to car club growth. To address this, the new plan sets out ten key actions, which will be delivered by all members of the coalition, to grow the membership of car clubs to one million users in London by 2025.
These include promoting car clubs as a sustainable travel option for local residents and businesses; creating more car club parking; encouraging more low emission vehicles, particularly electric vehicles, within car clubs.
Leon Daniels, managing director of Surface Transport at TfL, said: “The use of car clubs in London has grown significantly in recent years and we continue to support the initiative across London as a way to help reduce congestion and encourage sustainable travel. I myself am a regular user and this new action plan will help encourage more Londoners to consider the benefits of car clubs, including the money saved. I thoroughly welcome this positive action and look forward to working with the coalition to deliver these simple yet sensible actions.”
Alistair Kirkbride, executive director for Carplus, said: “Car club use meant that there were 14,000 fewer private cars on London's roads in 2014. We welcome support from Transport for London, London Councils and the Greater London Authority for the Car Club Action Plan. By working together we can grow car club membership in London to levels which will greatly reduce pressure on the roads whilst giving people access to cars when they need them.”
Gerry Keaney, Chief Executive of the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA), said: “The BVRLA is delighted to be a member of the Car Club Coalition. Supporting new models of urban mobility is essential if we hope to deal with the issues of congestion, road safety and air quality that affect our cities.
“Car clubs, car rental and other forms of pay-as-you-go motoring are evolving at a rapid pace. The BVRLA will support this development by ensuring that operators are treated fairly by policy makers and get all the support they need to serve their growing customer base.”
Mark Walker, general manager,3874 Zipcar UK, says: "London’s Car Club Strategy will have a significant impact on Londoners as it opens the door to a lifestyle less dependent on the car and especially car ownership. To achieve the one million members’ milestone, the delivery of the strategy needs to be bold. The most effective way of achieving this is for car clubs to also be included in the next generation of local transportation programmes such as TfL ticketing technology to create a one-travel ticket system for Londoners. An even bolder approach would be for London car owners to be offered financial incentives to ditch their cars and simply have access to various modes of transport, such as car clubs, when they need it."
New plan will help reach new joint target of one million London car club members by 2025
Future growth of car clubs will help improve London’s air quality and reduce congestion in the Capital
A new ‘strategy for car clubs’ in London has been launched today (21 May), to encourage residents and businesses across the capital to sign up to car club schemes as an alternative to direct car ownership.
The new action plan, jointly developed by
London is already one of the leading car club cities in Europe – 85 per cent of UK car club members are in the capital - and the new action plan will help take this further by developing and promoting car clubs and setting an example for other global cities to follow. Encouraging further use of car clubs was a key recommendation from the Mayor’s Roads Task Force, which was set up in July 2012 to help deliver a template for world-class streets and roads fit for the future.
London’s roads are already under pressure, and maintaining a highly functioning road network is central to ensure it retains its position as a world renowned economic capital. Research by the
Car clubs already have on-street parking bays in 27 of the 33 London boroughs and many boroughs have incorporated them into their transport infrastructure in innovative ways. However, low awareness of the schemes remains a key barrier to car club growth. To address this, the new plan sets out ten key actions, which will be delivered by all members of the coalition, to grow the membership of car clubs to one million users in London by 2025.
These include promoting car clubs as a sustainable travel option for local residents and businesses; creating more car club parking; encouraging more low emission vehicles, particularly electric vehicles, within car clubs.
Leon Daniels, managing director of Surface Transport at TfL, said: “The use of car clubs in London has grown significantly in recent years and we continue to support the initiative across London as a way to help reduce congestion and encourage sustainable travel. I myself am a regular user and this new action plan will help encourage more Londoners to consider the benefits of car clubs, including the money saved. I thoroughly welcome this positive action and look forward to working with the coalition to deliver these simple yet sensible actions.”
Alistair Kirkbride, executive director for Carplus, said: “Car club use meant that there were 14,000 fewer private cars on London's roads in 2014. We welcome support from Transport for London, London Councils and the Greater London Authority for the Car Club Action Plan. By working together we can grow car club membership in London to levels which will greatly reduce pressure on the roads whilst giving people access to cars when they need them.”
Gerry Keaney, Chief Executive of the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA), said: “The BVRLA is delighted to be a member of the Car Club Coalition. Supporting new models of urban mobility is essential if we hope to deal with the issues of congestion, road safety and air quality that affect our cities.
“Car clubs, car rental and other forms of pay-as-you-go motoring are evolving at a rapid pace. The BVRLA will support this development by ensuring that operators are treated fairly by policy makers and get all the support they need to serve their growing customer base.”
Mark Walker, general manager,
