They’re coming. On November 17, UVA will launch, in unison with Zipcar—the largest car-sharing service in the world—the Zipcar program. Three Hybrid Honda Insights and three fuel-efficient Honda Civics will be available for use 24/7 to University faculty, staff and students over 18—and local residents.
The partnership is intended to free up parking spaces and encourage easier, more responsible local transportation. According to UVA, the program is designed to decrease the number of cars that usually populate the campus at any give time. It’s called “a key component” in the University’s efforts to become sustainable.
According to Rebecca White, director of UVA Parking and Transportation, the number of permits sold since September are 18,500 total—that includes 15,250 sold for the year and 3,250 sold for short-term parking.
Of course, it’s neither free nor cheap.
Interested parties may sign up for the program for an annual fee of $35, then pay a daily (from $66 on week days and $72 on weekends) or hourly fee ($8 on week days and $9 on weekends) for use of the cars. Gas, insurance and 180 free miles are included. If you go over the 180 miles, every additional mile is $0.45.
The program also extends to Charlottesville residents for a $75 membership fee.
And, not surprisingly, an iPhone application to find and reserve a Zipcar is already up and running. Perhaps it’s because the program has already been active in more than 140 universities across the United States. The cool thing, though, is that with the application, one can even honk the horn and unlock the doors of any Zipcar enabled with this feature. Pretty cool indeed.
