Car-Sharing Pilot Program 'Unqualified Success': City

NEW YORK, NY —The New York Department of Transportation (DOT) chose Earth Day on Thursday to announce that its on-street car-share pilot program has been an "unqualified success," and that DOT planned on expanding the program and making it permanent.

Speaking at a press conference in Brooklyn, DOT Commissioner Hank Gutman said research had shown the three-year-old program, in which car-share vehicles were based in municipal lots around the city, has been successful in helping to reduce car use and emissions and has made car-share services more available to underserved communities.

"Almost three years ago, this administration predicted that New Yorkers would come to embrace the cleaner and greener alternative that more convenient car share offers - and 150,000 rides later, the unqualified success of our pilot proved us right," Gutman said.

Gutman added: "As we expand even further this year, we will want to hear from more communities that want this great transportation option."

The pilot program brought car share to 14 zones in the city, using a total of 285 spaces. In many cases, the cars were located in low-income and moderate-income neighborhoods like: Inwood, Washington Heights, Harlem, Parkchester, Red Hook, Jamaica and the Rockaways. Many of these neighborhoods had the highest rates of use in the overall program.

In a release, DOT revealed some of the conclusions from the pilot program, which were compiled from academic research by faculty at University of California-Berkeley:

• About 1,140 users, or 7 percent of program participants, either sold their cars or opted not to purchase a new one.
• Annual vehicles miles traveled (VMT) were reduced by about 38.7 million miles and produced an annual net reduction of 12,000 metric tons in greenhouse gases per year.
• Comparing their pre-car-share behavior, car-share users in the pilot drove fewer miles (7 percent reduction) and reduced greenhouse gas emissions (6 percent reduction).
• The pilot dramatically increased diversity: Black and Latino membership doubled to about 30 percent of total car-share users.

"The facts are in. Car sharing means fewer vehicles on the road, freed-up space on the streets and less pollution in the air," said Ben Furnas, director of the Mayor's Office of Sustainability. "By letting more New Yorkers share their vehicles, New York is fighting climate change and accelerating towards a cleaner, healthier more livable city."

According to a release, the program's proposed expansion will give car-share companies a chance to suggest locations for new spaces in areas now underserved by car share. To ensure continued equity, 20 percent of all spaces must be located in low-income and moderate-income neighborhoods, and participating companies will be required to continue offering discounts to NYCHA residents and IDNYC cardholders.

"At Zipcar, we're committed to making cities better places to live, and that starts with reducing a reliance on personal cars," said Tracey Zhen, president of Zipcar. "Thanks to the support of Mayor de Blasio and Commissioner Gutman, we're able to provide more New Yorkers across the city with access to a vehicle, without the burden of ownership.

"We're grateful for the city's thoughtful study during our successful three-year pilot program, and are pleased to see more independent research validate that Zipcar's car-sharing model supports the city's goals of improving sustainability and reducing ownership."