Author: Auto Rental International Online News

Car2Go Ends Service in 5 Cities

Austin, Denver, Calgary, and Portland will end service Oct. 31at midnight; Chicago’s service will end Dec. 31 at midnight. Photo via Car2go. Carsharing group Car2go will be ending its service in Austin, Denver, Portland, Chicago, and Calgary, Alberta, within the coming months, according to Freight Waves. In an email informing Portland members of the closure,… Continue reading Car2Go Ends Service in 5 Cities

Lime Ends LimePod Carsharing Service

Lime began operating its carsharing service in February. Screenshot via Michaela Kwoka-Coleman.  Scooter-sharing service is ending its LimePod carsharing, according to GeekWire. The free floating carsharing service was operating in Seattle.  Lime will begin taking vehicles off the streets next month. Operations are supposed to be completely shuttered by Dec. 31. The company will stop… Continue reading Lime Ends LimePod Carsharing Service

Forth to Start Electric Car Share Program Trial in Under Served Communities

Hood River presents an ideal opportunity to test, asses, and learn how to best offer an electric car sharing service in a rural setting. Photo via Pixabay. Forth announced that it has received funding for the Clean Rural Shared Electric Mobility (CRuSE) Project form the U.S. Department of Energy for Advanced Vehicle Technologies Research.  The… Continue reading Forth to Start Electric Car Share Program Trial in Under Served Communities

DriveItAway’s Dealer Subscription Program to Serve Business Fleets

DriveItAway Inc., with a car dealer focus on shared mobility, has introduced a new turnkey vehicle subscription and monthly rental program for its dealer partners. The existing DriveItAway platform was created for car dealers who are looking to provide shared mobility options to facilitate temporary rental vehicles for ride share, “gig” drivers. It now includes… Continue reading DriveItAway’s Dealer Subscription Program to Serve Business Fleets

Gas Shortages, Airport Closures, and Crisis Assist Ahead of Hurricane Dorian

A category 2 hurricane will be making landfall in Florida this week leaving travelers with limited transportation in a state of emergency.  Photo via Wikimedia Commons. As hurricane Dorian is underway and on track to hit the southeast, Florida is hit with a gas shortage, airports are deciding on whether to remain closed or open,… Continue reading Gas Shortages, Airport Closures, and Crisis Assist Ahead of Hurricane Dorian

Carwiz Adds Franchise Partner in Greece

Today, Carwiz is present on the markets of Turkey, Latvia, Cyprus, Morocco, St. Maarten, Albania, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, and, now, Greece. Photo via Depositphotos. Gelasakis, a Greece-based group that focuses on travel, maritime services, and hospitality, officially signed a partnership with Carwiz International, Croatia’s first branded rent-a-car, earlier this year.  By analysing the rent-a-car industry through… Continue reading Carwiz Adds Franchise Partner in Greece

Europcar Fined $350K for Credit, Debit Card Surcharges

Since late 2016, large businesses in Australia have been banned from collecting surgarges for credit or debit card use that go above what the bank charges for the transaction.  Photo via Depositphotos. The Federal Court of Australia ruled that Europcar charged customers excessive fees for using their credit or debit cards to rent vehicles, the… Continue reading Europcar Fined $350K for Credit, Debit Card Surcharges

Didi Pilots Autonomous Ride-Hailing in Shanghai

Cheng Wei, founder and CEO of Didi Chuxing, made the announcement at Shanghai’s World Artificial Intelligence Conference, where Didi is showcasing robo-taxi hailing with its autonomous driving fleet on a closed track.   Photo via Didi. As Didi Chuxing accelerates its robo-taxi project, passengers will be able to hail self-driving vehicles from its app in a pilot robo-taxi service in… Continue reading Didi Pilots Autonomous Ride-Hailing in Shanghai

Daimler Shares Vision for Share Now, Formerly car2go

As Daimler celebrates its landmark in carsharing, it looks to focus on future mobility concepts.  Photo via Daimler. Beginning in 2009, Daimler established the first fleet for free-floating carsharing in Ulm with 200 smart vehicles. A year before, SHARE NOW, previously known as car2go, started operation as the first location-independent carsharing system worldwide. Today, Daimler… Continue reading Daimler Shares Vision for Share Now, Formerly car2go