Zipcars - a brilliantly simple new car hire/sharing scheme - learn more today ? Save the world tomorrow - Amazing pictures !!

Zipcar explain everything on their website. Clearly and with great simplicity. Wikipedia

It is a novel international concept where you rent / carshare a car by the hour / day and pay nothing else, insurance, fuel, London congestion charge.

How does it work ? - Go here
FAQ's - Go here

Sign up. Become a Zipster (200K worldwide May 2008)get a Zipcard - hope it's more secure than an Oyster.

Then to select a car (so far only London which opened Nov 2006 and N. America) - simply click on a flag of above map - Bit thin on the ground sarf of the river .. which gives availability hourly / daily rates (incl 180 miles) ... some exclusions on age if under 21.

Select the car ...

New sites opening daily - Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) Mass. has just announced a partnership with Zipcar - two self-service Zipcars – 2008 Honda Civic Hybrids – will be available for use 24 hours a day, seven days a week, parked along the campus Quadrangle. The cars will be available to all staff and students aged 18 and older, with gas, maintenance, insurance, and reserved parking included in low hourly and daily rates.

Anyone any experience / tales to tell ?

Lord Patel is NOT on a commission. This just seems a brilliantly simple and ideal use of the web, and helps to reduce car ownership. Let's hope they have done their sums right and make it work.... with current cost of car ownership it sounds good

There is even a T shirt ..

Nothing to do with the Conservative Party