It's never been easier to be carless in the city. Not because of a boom in public transit, but because of car-sharing services, which make owning a vehicle akin to paying for a nanny instead of hiring the occasional babysitter.
The Basics
Where do the cars live?
Established companies like Zipcar have parking lots sprinkled throughout urban areas, while newer P2P services connect drivers with private owners (a nice way to make extra money, given that the average car sits unused for 22 hours a day). Most systems use smartphones, GPS tracking, social networks, RFID cards, and the real-time web to connect drivers with vehicles, often within minutes.
How does the system work?
Drivers typically sign up online for memberships, often choosing a subscription plan or a monthly minimum payment. Reservations take a few taps on a phone, and unlocking the car can be as easy as touching a smartcard to the windshield. Usually keys and a gas card will be waiting inside the vehicle, though some car-sharing networks, especially P2Ps, require an in-person key exchange.
What about Insurance?
The services in our review all include rental coverage, which varies by company. A 2011 California law called AB 1871 protects car owners in P2P networks by stating that the owner's insurance is not liable during a rental period as long as the P2P service has coverage and the owner's rental revenue does not exceed the expense of owning and operating the vehicle. Several other states are considering similar laws.
Buying advice
AAA estimates that the average American who owns a small sedan and drives it 10,000 miles a year spends $5,860 per annum on car ownership. For that, you could log up to 20 hours a week through a car-sharing outfit.
But many providers limit each rental to three or four days and start charging extra fees after 160 miles per day. So for errands and the occasional weekend getaway, a car-sharing setup can save you time and money. For longer commutes or out-of-town trips, you're better off buying a car or using a traditional rental agency.
How We Tested
We evaluated standard providers Zipcar and City CarShare and P2P services RelayRides and Getaround on midday errands, rush-hour commutes, and evening outings on the streets of San Francisco.
1. Zipcar
Zipcar's presence in more than 100 US cities, plus Toronto, Vancouver, and London, gives it by far the largest footprint of any service. You can use the mobile app to reserve your car and your membership card to unlock it. Even with just 20 minutes' notice, we always found cars at our nearest Zipcar lot. The fleet of new and mostly compact cars works for quick errands, but a limited selection of SUVs and trucks means large loads require more planning.
WIRED Two-tap process for extending reservation. Website sorts by price or location.
TIRED No sorting results in mobile app. Insurance covers just $300,000 per accident, regardless of how many cars and people are involved.
From $7.75 per hour, Zipcar
Rating: 8 out of 10____2. City CarShare
The reliable San Francisco nonprofit has more than 330 cars stationed at 180 Bay Area sites. There's no app, but the mobile version of the website works well and lets you extend reservations by 15, 30, or 60 minutes, though the only way to shorten is to log onto the full website or suffer through a voice-operated system. If you trip the hair-trigger fraud system — like if your billing address says "suite" and CarShare has "apt." on file — you'll have to pick up the key fob in person.
WIRED Low price. Minimum rental period of just 15 minutes. $1 million insurance coverage. Gas included.
TIRED Mobile site lists locations in a drop-down rather than on a map.