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FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
BERKELEY
AND CITY CARSHARE TO MAKE HISTORY – FIRST SHARED MUNICIPAL FLEET IN THE
U.S.
City of
Berkeley will save hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars; City
CarShare will make fleet of city hybrid cars available to its public
members on nights and weekends. Berkeley,
CA – The City of Berkeley
is poised to become the first city in the country to share a dedicated
fleet of municipal cars with private citizens. The innovative partnership
with City CarShare will save Berkeley taxpayers hundreds of
thousands of dollars and provide an alternative to car ownership for
Berkeley residents. City CarShare – the largest non-profit car-sharing
organization in the U.S. – allows members to access vehicles located at
40 locations throughout the Bay Area. The
contract is scheduled for a vote by the Berkeley City Council on Tuesday,
July 20th. Officials from the City of Berkeley and City CarShare
will hold a short ceremony at City Hall on that morning at 11:30 a.m. to
mark the occasion. “This
is a win-win program for the city government and the people of
Berkeley,” said Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates. “By working with City
CarShare, The City will be saving thousands of dollars each year and
reducing the environmental impact of employees driving while conducting
city business. When the cars aren’t in use by city employees, Berkeley
residents will be able to use them as an inexpensive, environmentally
sound alternative to car ownership.” Under the
terms of the partnership between City CarShare and the City of
Berkeley, the city will retire 15 of its fleet vehicles and replace them
with five hybrid cars operated by City CarShare. City employees
will have exclusive access to those five cars during business hours,
Monday-Friday. During the evenings and weekend, any member of City
CarShare may reserve one of the cars for their own use.
(Information on City CarShare is available at www.citycarshare.org.) The City
of Berkeley estimates that it will save approximately $250,000 in direct
costs during the first three years of the program (mostly in vehicle
costs) and an additional $150,000 in indirect savings (including reduced
insurance payouts and staff time not spent on reserving and maintaining
cars). “The
program that City CarShare is establishing with the City of
Berkeley is a model for cities around the Bay area and the country,”
said Larry Magid, executive director of City CarShare. “By
replacing a portion of their regular fleet with City CarShare
vehicles and our computerized reservation system, the city will be able to
know exactly who is driving which cars, at what time and the exact cost.
They’ll also be using newer, greener hybrid cars at a lower cost than
they would pay for regular fleet cars.”
WHO:
Mayor Tom Bates, city officials, and representatives from City WHAT:
Ceremony marking historic partnership of City CarShare and
the City of Berkeley. City CarShare vehicles will be displayed. WHERE:
Berkeley Civic Center Building (rear parking lot) WHEN:
Tuesday, July 20th |
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