Forbes.com: Can Ford's New London Car Share Program Beat Out Zipcar?
This week Ford launched a new car sharing program, GoDrive, in London. Yet, the GoDrive website doesn’t have the Detroit-based car manufacturer’s logo. Are car companies realizing that ownership is not the future and thus, buying into the sharing economy?
London is an ideal place to launch the program, given the city’s growing efforts to clean up the air and get more cars off the street. TfL, or Transport for London, and the Greater London Authority created the “Vision for Car Clubs” initiative, which would encourage people to use a car only when needed, not purchase one. With little parking space and a growing population, London officials want to tap into more car-sharing programs. By 2025, the initiative wants to have 1 million members enrolled in a car club.
Ford, which has been experimenting with car-sharing schemes in Germany, India, and the US, is beta testing with 2,000 users in London.
So, what’s new about this car-share scheme? Aren’t there enough of them already out there with Zipcar being the most famous (and widely used)?
Ford’s GoDrive lets drivers pay for the service and access the cars using their smartphone. The program charges per minute and doesn’t have an annual fee, like Zipcar. Plus, it lets drivers book a one-way trip, rather than having them return to the pickup spot for drop off (customary with Zipcar).
Trips include fuel, insurance, and guaranteed parking at the end of the route. First five minutes are free as well. Every following minute is 17 pence, or 25 cents, which adds up to about £10, or $15.
Compare that to BMW’s DriveNow service which costs 39 pence per minute plus congestion charges. Zipcar comes to £6 per hour with a £60 yearly membership but it requires drivers to pay for a minimum of an hour. Zipcar rentals also vary by car and can have other costs. That makes GoDrive significantly cheaper. Plus, Ford is offering a promotional £20 of driving credit for new customers.
With the GoDrive app, drivers can track their fare like a running taxi meter. Customers can book a car up to 15 minutes before use and the car will automatically unlock near the booked time. NFC cards are also available for regular users to unlock cars.
Currently, 50 cars have been dispersed over 20 locations; half of the cars are zero-emission Ford Focus Electric cars, others are Fiestas. Eventually, the company would ramp it up to 1,000 cars throughout the city.
This program comes at an interesting time as London cabbies have been getting frustrated with the rise of car services in London. The Black Cab drivers protested this week, converging at Victoria near TfL’s offices, asking for more regulation on illegal cabbies and private hire drivers in the city.
Ford, however, makes the case that car-sharing is only going to get more popular, even in a city with so many alternative public transport options. The Detroit giant, which has been trying to revamp its image, argues that car-sharing will rise to 23 percent between 2013 and 2025.
Earlier, the city of London launched a bicycle scheme nicknamed Boris Bikes, after London’s famous mayor. The program enabled commuters to pick up a bike and drop it off at a different location. GoDrive is a similar concept but it eliminates having to deal with British weather.
As Ford expands to the US, it will have more competitors to deal with: Audi launched an app-based car rental in San Francisco this year. While Audi’s program resembles more of a traditional car rental, with prices based on per day usage, it may be the beginnings of another car-share.
All this activity begs the question, are more car manufacturers likely to join the Airbnb-style economy with their own car-sharing schemes?
This week Ford launched a new car sharing program, GoDrive, in London. Yet, the GoDrive website doesn’t have the Detroit-based car manufacturer’s logo. Are car companies realizing that ownership is not the future and thus, buying into the sharing economy?
London is an ideal place to launch the program, given the city’s growing efforts to clean up the air and get more cars off the street. TfL, or Transport for London, and the Greater London Authority created the “Vision for Car Clubs” initiative, which would encourage people to use a car only when needed, not purchase one. With little parking space and a growing population, London officials want to tap into more car-sharing programs. By 2025, the initiative wants to have 1 million members enrolled in a car club.
Ford, which has been experimenting with car-sharing schemes in Germany, India, and the US, is beta testing with 2,000 users in London.
So, what’s new about this car-share scheme? Aren’t there enough of them already out there with Zipcar being the most famous (and widely used)?
Ford’s GoDrive lets drivers pay for the service and access the cars using their smartphone. The program charges per minute and doesn’t have an annual fee, like Zipcar. Plus, it lets drivers book a one-way trip, rather than having them return to the pickup spot for drop off (customary with Zipcar).
Trips include fuel, insurance, and guaranteed parking at the end of the route. First five minutes are free as well. Every following minute is 17 pence, or 25 cents, which adds up to about £10, or $15.
Compare that to BMW’s DriveNow service which costs 39 pence per minute plus congestion charges. Zipcar comes to £6 per hour with a £60 yearly membership but it requires drivers to pay for a minimum of an hour. Zipcar rentals also vary by car and can have other costs. That makes GoDrive significantly cheaper. Plus, Ford is offering a promotional £20 of driving credit for new customers.
With the GoDrive app, drivers can track their fare like a running taxi meter. Customers can book a car up to 15 minutes before use and the car will automatically unlock near the booked time. NFC cards are also available for regular users to unlock cars.
Currently, 50 cars have been dispersed over 20 locations; half of the cars are zero-emission Ford Focus Electric cars, others are Fiestas. Eventually, the company would ramp it up to 1,000 cars throughout the city.
This program comes at an interesting time as London cabbies have been getting frustrated with the rise of car services in London. The Black Cab drivers protested this week, converging at Victoria near TfL’s offices, asking for more regulation on illegal cabbies and private hire drivers in the city.
Ford, however, makes the case that car-sharing is only going to get more popular, even in a city with so many alternative public transport options. The Detroit giant, which has been trying to revamp its image, argues that car-sharing will rise to 23 percent between 2013 and 2025.
Earlier, the city of London launched a bicycle scheme nicknamed Boris Bikes, after London’s famous mayor. The program enabled commuters to pick up a bike and drop it off at a different location. GoDrive is a similar concept but it eliminates having to deal with British weather.
As Ford expands to the US, it will have more competitors to deal with: Audi launched an app-based car rental in San Francisco this year. While Audi’s program resembles more of a traditional car rental, with prices based on per day usage, it may be the beginnings of another car-share.
All this activity begs the question, are more car manufacturers likely to join the Airbnb-style economy with their own car-sharing schemes?
