Car-sharing vs. Car ownership

A large and luxurious car is a status symbol in many cultures. Looking at the Dutch culture this is definitely not the case (for a select group of people it is, but we elaborate on this in a future blog) most cars in our small country do correspond to the size of our country. One argument for this relationship can be the fact that we have limited (parking) space in our larger cities. Another argument can be the fact that we have a pretty reliable public transportation system (although sometimes it doesn’t feel like that when there’s another ‘power cable damaged or a ‘collision with a person’) but these trains do have pretty comfortable first class seats to relax in. Another thing is that we also don’t have to cover very large distances by car, so why would you then need a luxurious car?

Perhaps a reason for not owning a large car or not owning a car at all can be found in the fact that an average car is used only 1 hour a day. Why is it that for a period of more than 100 years we stick to the concept of owning a car? An own car creates the most flexibility a human being can wish for and the model of owning a car was encouraged by governments because the car industry was an important factor for economic development. The last decade we’re experiencing a trend towards sustainability. This affects the awareness that car ownership might not be the best solution for our society in terms of spatial planning and sustainability. For each individual who drives less than 6,000 kilometers on a yearly basis the choice for an own car is also in financial terms not the optimal solution.

Car ownership is an old-fashioned model, for many people there is a better solution: share a car with your neighbours or flat mates. Car-sharing vehicles are in general small and fuel-efficient cars, various studies indicate a shared car replaces up to 10-15 private vehicles which is also beneficial for the public space available in your neighbourhood. The cars are 24/7 available so flexibility is high, although you have to reserve a car if you want to be sure about the availability. StudentCar offers this car-sharing service mainly to students, so they can get used to the model of sharing cars instead of owning a car. Are you the next student who will experience the advantages of car-sharing?