City CarShare, the largest nonprofit carsharing organization in North America, is driving the San Francisco Bay Area’s access to electric-based vehicles by providing 18 plug-in vehicles and 160 hybrids available for shared use.
With the addition of two new Ford Focus electric vehicles, City CarShare’s fleet now includes 13 plug-in hybrids and five all-electric vehicles. Forty-four percent of City CarShare’s fleet is now made up of electric, hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles.
City CarShare’s fleet prevents 80 million pounds of CO2 from entering the atmosphere each year. All of City CarShare’s vehicles are at or near the top of their class in fuel and emission efficiency.
A recent survey of City CarShare members indicated that they were interested in electric and hybrid vehicles as a transportation option – members identified battery (all-electric) and plugin hybrids as an excellent option (45% and 39%) or good option (38% and 40%).
When asked why they are interested in using plug-in vehicles from City CarShare, members indicated: 1) curious about the technology, 2) environmental reasons, 3) to reduce petroleum or fossil fuels, 4) the potential for cost savings or fuel efficiency, or 5) an affinity for new technology.
City CarShare provides easy access and convenience to its shared vehicles with more than 200 locations in San Francisco, Berkeley, Oakland, Alameda, Daly City, El Cerrito and Fremont. The eight battery-based electric vehicle models available include the Ford Focus Electric, Nissan Leaf and Mitsubishi iMiEV; the Chevrolet Volt and Toyota Prius plug-in hybrid; and the Honda Civic, Toyota Camry and Toyota Prius hybrids.
