Okay, this might just be one of the smartest all time ideas  in the history of EVER.  I would’ve given my eyeteeth for something like this back when I was in college.

For those of you still in college, especially those of you living on campus, you know first hand how tough it can be.  Basically, if it’s not within walking distance of you, it’s just plain old not available.  All the great things to see and do and you can’t get to a one of them because YOU CAN’T REACH THEM.

And having a car on campus is a difficult proposition at best.  Parking is insanely difficult to come by and often expensive.

Thus, having a ZipCar branch around, like CalTech just got, is a truly brilliant idea.  ZipCar, in case you don’t remember, acts as basically an extremely short term car rental service, so that students on campus can borrow a car for a day and return it later.  Naturally, this is a pretty pricey service–upward of sixty bucks a day, and that doesn’t include the fees you pay to be able to pay the fees to rent the car in the first place.

But still, for otherwise stranded students, this might beat trying to figure out the nightmarish car system on college campuses.

Tags: caltech, Car Rental, college, college campus, short term car rental, zipcar

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We’re all familiar with the ZipCar by now, that car rental line that offers driving freedom to urbanites who don’t want to bother with the hassles that come with owning a car.  But what you may not be aware of is that, if you have an iPhone, you’ve just opened up the entire world of ZipCar.

iPhone users will now be able to lock and unlock ZipCar car doors remotely with their iPhones, as well as start their engines remotely.  Plus you can even locate and reserve a particular car from the ZipCar lineup with your iPhone.

Seems that one third of all ZipCar customers use iPhones for one purpose or another, and so, offering iPhone connectivity represented a significant advantage to ZipCar users.  This in turn helps fuel brand loyalty.

It’s a smart idea for the ZipCar company, and if you’re an iPhone user who’s looking for a rental car, ZipCar may just be your ticket after all.

Tags: iPhone, remote start, rental car, rental car company, zipcar

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A lot of people out there don’t like the thought of having a big car payment every month, but the thought of getting around by bicycle is even less pleasant.  So for some people, places like ZipCar may be just the service they need.

For a hundred and twenty five bucks a year, and ten bucks an hour, you can “borrow” a car from ZipCar, or for other amounts of money in other locations you can perform a similar rental arrangement from one of the numerous other short term car rental establishments out there.

It’s not a bad idea, really, assuming you don’t mind driving a car numerous other people have driven before you and done who knows what in, as well as shuffling your schedule around to match the availability of the rentals.  That and figuring out how to get home from the rental place, because you just gave up a car.  But for urbanites, this might be a worthwhile solution that doesn’t require you to drive a moped like a fourteen year old.

Tags: Car Rental, moped, short term car rental, zipcar

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We’ve heard of Zipcar several times now and know what its all about, you sign up for the service, request a car and then pick it up at a nearby location. This effectively eliminates the need to actually have your own car, but just how big is the market for such a service?

Well, according to Zipcar CEO Scott Griffith, massive. So massive in fact that he sees his company being worth $1 billion dollars at some point in the future. Of course, they still have a ways to go with 300,000 members and 6,500 vehicles currently in service but it’s certainly a start and it’s the ambitious nature of this executive that counts.

via autoblog

Tags: car sharing, market, scott griffith, zipcar

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ZipCar is once again in focus but this time, it is because of their first-ever Electric Vehicle Pod. These new vehicles are among the most efficient and technologically advanced on the road today and are available to members by the hour for a fraction of the cost of owning one.

“Since early in this decade, Zipcar has been integrating alternative vehicles into the fleet — giving our members the opportunity to push the envelope and evaluate a range of advanced-vehicle technologies,” said Scott Griffith, chairman and CEO of Zipcar. “Our proprietary car sharing technology platform allows us to manage a variety of cutting-edge vehicles, serving hundreds of thousands of Zipsters who benefit from convenience, cost savings and a commitment to reducing carbon emissions.”

With the uncertainty as far as reliability and feasibility of owning one still up in the air, people who want to go places can still do so by trying out this alternative. Apparently a lot of issues such as charging issues and the length at where they can go is still unresolved so why worry if you have ZipCar to help you out for now?

(Source) Press

Tags: advanced vehicle technologies, cutting edge, electric car, electric vehicle, feasibility, new vehicles, pod, reducing carbon emissions, technology platform, zipcar

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In an effort that is aimed to promote car sharing and environmental-friendliness, Zipcar, has expanded its University of Michigan program by partnering with the getDowntown Program, the Ann Arbor Area Chamber of Commerce and the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority to bring car sharing to the downtown community as an environmentally-friendly transportation alternative.

The partnership continues the city’s commitment to invest in sustainable solutions and brings the successful University program to more Ann Arbor residents, students and businesses.

Beginning today, four self-service Zipcars — Toyota Matrix’s and two Scion xD’s — will be available for use 24 hours a day, seven days a week and will be located at the Fourth and Catherine parking lot, near the Ann Arbor Farmer’s Market, and at the surface parking lot at Main and William, next to Palio Restaurant.

This will bring a total of 17 Zipcars to the Ann Arbor community (with 13 already located on the University of Michigan campus). All local residents 21+ can join the service, with gas, maintenance, insurance and reserved parking included in low hourly and daily rates. All University of Michigan students 18+, faculty and staff will also be able to use the four vehicles located off campus.

(Source) Press

Tags: ann arbor area, ann arbor area chamber, ann arbor community, ann arbor residents, area chamber of commerce, car sharing, day seven, environmental friendliness, maintenance insurance, michigan campus, michigan program, michigan students, s market, Scion, scion xd, sustainable solutions, toyota matrix, zipcar, zipcars

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In an effort to increase awareness in San Francisco, Zipcar has tied up with the city of San Francisco to deliver a pilot program for plug-in hybrid vehicles in its Bay Area fleet. Zipcar showcased the converted Toyota Prius plug-in hybrid at a special charging station across the street from City Hall.

Zipcar is supporting the Mayor’s drive to increase the awareness and use of electric vehicles (EVs), while also providing a convenient, cost-effective solution to consumer transportation needs. Zipcar’s legacy of offering clean cars dates back to 2003, when it was the first commercial fleet to widely introduce hybrids in Seattle.

“Zipcar encourages sustainable lifestyles in several ways — fewer personally owned cars, less driving overall, and now the addition of these super efficient plug-in cars,” said Mark Norman, President and Chief Operating Officer of Zipcar. “Our members strongly support the notion of adding next-generation clean cars, and this program is an important first step in exploring the potential.”

(Source) Press

Tags: clean cars, electric vehicles, hybrid cars, hybrids, toyota prius, zipcar

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