car2go Hits the Lone Star State

Daimler chooses Austin Texas as the first international pilot site for its car2go urban mobility program.

Everything in Texas will no longer be big

smart fortwo meets a Longhorns fan

Beginning this fall, Daimler will begin a pilot program in the U.S. that will coincide with an expansion of the program that began in Ulm, Germany in October of last year. Called car2go, the idea is to make available for rent a fleet of smart fortwo vehicles to registered users on an as-needed basis from any location within a defined city area.

Unlike other car-sharing programs, the theory behind car2go is that a user will be able to get in a car and drive at any time of day without having to reserve one in advance. After it has been used, the fortwo can be returned to any available parking spot within the defined area of operation.

Initial pilot project

Daimler began the first pilot project in Ulm, Germany, with a group of employees from the local Daimler Research Center and their families in October of 2008 with a fleet of 50 cars. This month, a public test phase begins with an increase in the fleet to 200 cars and the availability of cars2go for all 120,000 residents of Ulm as well as to visitors to the city.

“From the very beginning, we have seen car2go as hugely advantageous and a great opportunity for Ulm as a City of Science. The City is benefiting enormously from the public interest in car2go. We anticipate a reduction in the burden on city center traffic and parking in particular,” says Ulm’s Mayor Ivo Gonner. “We are very pleased that the first car2go in the U.S. will be driving in Austin. We feel a connection to Austin, in that science and cosmopolitanism is held in high esteem in both cities.”

Austin city limits

To Daimler, the choice of Austin, Texas is seen as the next logical step in the program. Home to one of the largest universities in the U.S. (and crazed University of Texas Longhorns fans), the city located in the Texas hill country boasts of a mild climate as well as a progressive and diversified economic environment. Austin also allows the German manufacturer to begin focusing on larger metro areas as both the population and the metro area are roughly 6 times larger than Ulm.

“We conceived car2go for international implementation from the very beginning,” explains Robert Henrich, the project leader, talking about program targets. “With the positive experience that we have gathered in Ulm so far, we are now focusing on the challenges and opportunities presented by larger cities.”

How it works

After registration with car2go, the customer either receives a membership card or finds his driver license tagged with an electronic identifier that will unlock the vehicle. Available vehicles can quickly be located via the internet or through a car2go service hotline. Once located, the customer holds the card up to a reading device located in the windshield, gets in the car and enters a PIN code, then drives off. In addition to instant rentals, vehicles can also be reserved up to 24 hours in advance with the location of the vehicle sent to them via text message.

The rental period can be as long as necessary and, to avoid obvious free-for-alls, the vehicle remains reserved during any stop-offs during the rental period. The fortwos can be left in any parking space not subject to fees or restrictions while specially marked car2go spaces will be available at high-traffic locations such as train stations.

Although specific rates have yet to be set, vehicles can be rented by the minute, hour or day and pricing will include taxes, insurance, mileage and gas. A car2go service team on the ground will also handle daily maintenance of all vehicles.

all photos courtesy of Daimler AG.

Tags: austin texas, car2go, daimler, fortwo, smart, Smart ForTwo, texas, texas longhorns, university of texas, urban mobility