More and More People Prefer Carsharing to Own Car

Last year, car-sharing services covered some 23 million kilometers, and hundreds of thousands of people have already signed up for the services of three carsharing companies, GreenGo, ShareNow and Mol Limo, according to a summary from the Future Mobility Alliance.

Experts say the growth will continue this year, as while in the past it was mainly worthwhile for people with relatively low mileage to use a car-sharing car, with the rising cost of car maintenance it is now worth using a car-sharing car instead of your own, even at 18,000 kilometers annually.

International surveys show that, with 96-98% of private cars on the road, car-sharing can replace 6-12 private cars in urban transport.

In total, nearly 1,500 cars can be rented on a per-minute and/or per-kilometer basis on Budapest's roads, of which more than 40% are purely electric. In addition to per-minute rentals, hourly, all-day and even multi-day rentals are also available, so leaving the capital is not an obstacle, according to the Future Mobility Association.

According to the data collected, ShareNow's user base reached 80,000 last year, a 45% increase on the 55,000 users in 2021, with nearly 8 million kilometers driven in 2022. The number of GreenGo registered users increased by nearly 30% from 2021 to 2022, and the number of kilometers driven increased by 85%: the electric-only fleet company saved more than 1,300 tons of carbon dioxide emissions last year alone.

The association recalled that while previous analyses showed that it was not worth it to own a car for smaller cars at 7,500 kilometers per year and for medium cars at 13,000 kilometers or less, recent research shows that carsharing is a cost-effective solution even for much higher mileage.

Experts from the Future Mobility Alliance calculate that even at 18,000 kilometers per year, which is already a significant car use, and which consists of daily urban trips of 5-10 kilometers and weekend shopping trips and 2-3-day trips within the country, it is not worth investing in a car even for the majority of people who use their own car. However, using multiple services and other means of transport, combined with a public transport season ticket, is even more cost-effective.

The communication statement quotes András Kárpáti, President of the Future Mobility Association, as saying that companies have also recognized the benefits of car-sharing, with many offering carsharing subscriptions and usage as a benefit to their employees instead of company cars, as this approach is in line with companies' sustainability efforts, as well as offering significant cost savings. ShareNow and GreenGo data, for example, show that the number of business users has more than doubled in a year.