An owner lists a profile of his or her car online, sets an hourly rate, and pays RelayRides a 40 percent commission.Ĭar-sharing services are part of a larger trend of "sharing" commerce made possible by the Web and the changing priorities of today's young adults. RelayRides, a Boston-based company, pairs car owners who use their rides infrequently with potential renters. All they have to do is share the service with other users.
Zipcar ann arbor plus#
They pay an annual membership fee plus an hourly use rate for access to cars parked in various locations in each city. These are people who don't need a car on a regular basis, but could use one for the occasional errand – a trip to Target, for instance, or helping a friend move. " Reimbursement for gas and parking from Ibex when using their own cars for such errands "far exceeds the cost of using Zipcar," she says.Ībout 750,000 Zipcar members have similar motivations in their personal use.
Hill and her staff use the car service for quick, irregular day trips – "Making a Home Depot run for soil and plants, or when we need to go to a meeting at corporate headquarters in White River Junction. The car subscription service is ideal for her store's particular needs: The business doesn't use a car regularly enough to own one, and employees mainly commute via public transportation. "At first we signed up mainly for the parking, because it's so difficult to park in Back Bay," says the store manager for the Ibex Outerwear company's location in Boston's Back Bay. Liana Hill signed up for a corporate Zipcar account in December.