University Times

Borrowing the car soon could have a new meaning in Pittsburgh and it doesn’t involve asking Dad for the keys.

The Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership (PDP) is taking the lead in bringing car-sharing to town.

Seattle-based Flexcar anticipates a spring launch of its service as part of its plan to expand its business in the eastern United States.

PDP’s part of the deal is to promote charter membership among local businesses and institutions, while Flexcar will manage the day-to-day operations.

The goal is to launch with 20 cars and at least 20 charter members — institutions, businesses or agencies that will put up $800 a month for 100 hours of vehicle use, said Lucinda Beattie, PDP vice president of transportation.

So far, Pittsburgh’s Urban Redevelopment Authority, VisitPittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust all have signed on as charter members, Beattie said, adding that more than a dozen other businesses and agencies are reviewing contracts. Where the cars will be located depends on where the members are. Both Downtown and Oakland have promising demographics, Flexcar spokesperson William del Valle said.

Beattie said density, income and education levels, high transit use and the high cost of parking are all indicators that car-sharing could benefit Downtown and Oakland drivers, she said.

Although the plan has been presented to Pitt administrators and the parking and transportation committee, the University currently is not reviewing a contract, Beattie said. Whether cars will be available in Oakland remains to be seen.

While some potential charter members in Oakland are reviewing contracts, including Carnegie-Mellon University, none has signed on, said Beattie. “Right now all the contracts are Downtown.”

Joe Phillips, Pitt’s assistant vice chancellor for business, said the University likely will promote Flexcar as an option, similar to the way vanpool services are promoted.

Phillips said Flexcar could be useful for students, faculty and staff who live nearby and typically use public transit, but find they need to go somewhere transit won’t easily take them. “The intent is more to use public transit as the primary source and take advantage of Flexcar when there’s a need,” he said.

Phillips said part of Pitt’s parking and transportation committee’s work is to vote on where students’ transportation fee money goes. That money currently is being spent on Pitt’s shuttle system and the Port Authority agreement. “It’s money well spent in terms of the number of users,” he said, adding there’s no comparison with the smaller number who would use Flexcar.

In addition, for business purposes, the University’s motor pool fleet of more than 20 vehicles is available to meet employees’ needs. Still, he sees Flexcar as an additional option, rather than competition for motor pool services.

“It’s new and we’ll continue to watch it and watch what its demand is,” he said.

PDP spokesperson Kathryn Petrie noted that the cars would be handy for Oakland faculty and staff who typically use mass transit, but might want to run a quick midday errand nearby. And, she noted that Flexcar has a student program for drivers aged 18-20.

In addition, PDP views car-sharing as a way to show its commitment to residential development Downtown. Urban dwellers may find they have no need for a vehicle, or two-car households may find they can shed that second vehicle by using a car-sharing program, Beattie said.

Whether or not the University becomes a charter member won’t affect a driver’s ability to sign up as an individual member, del Valle said.

“Once there are cars on the ground, there’s no reason they can’t enroll,” he said. In addition to the hourly car usage (which ranges from about $8-$12 an hour depending on the type of vehicle and when it is used), individual members pay $35 to join plus an annual fee of $40, he said.

But cars may be less convenient to reach if there’s no institutional member nearby. “Convenience really runs the show,” del Valle said, noting that informal polling shows people are willing to walk four minutes to get to a car, but not much longer before their enthusiasm cools.

“We say with some sincerity that we’ve got to be twice as frequent as Starbucks,” del Valle said, noting that in downtown Seattle, where Flexcar has 100 cars, he has about a dozen vehicles available within three blocks of his office.

Members can sign up online and, after being screened, receive a keycard and information manual.

Using the car-sharing service is similar to checking out a library book, he said. Reservations are made online or by phone.

Members can reserve cars anywhere Flexcar operates. The company has cars in Seattle, Portland, Ore.; San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Chicago, Atlanta, Gainesville, Fla. and Washington, D.C., and the campuses of the University of Florida, Portland State University, University of California (in Berkeley, San Diego and Los Angeles); University of Maryland, Georgia Tech, Emory University, University of Washington and University of Portland.

The fleet is predominantly a mix of sedans such as Toyota Scions or Corollas, along with some hybrid Honda Civics or Priuses. About 20 percent of the fleet is made up of other vehicles such as minivans, pickup trucks, MiniCoopers or Honda Elements, del Valle said.

When it’s time to take the car, the member goes to the parking place, waves a keycard that unlocks the door and drives away. If fuel is needed during the trip, there’s a gasoline card inside the car. When the trip is over, the member simply returns the car to its place and locks it. Members get a monthly bill outlining the number of trips and hourly usage, “kind of like a phone bill,” del Valle said. The average bill is about $150 a month, he said.

In comparison, the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics in its 2005 Consumer Expenditure Survey found that the average household, which has a pre-tax income of $58,712, devotes $8,344 a year to transportation costs — with only $448 going to public transportation costs and the remainder covering vehicle purchases, gasoline, oil and other vehicle expenses. That represents 18 percent of a household’s annual expenditures.

Additional information on the program is available online at www.flexcar.com or, for charter membership information, contact PDP at 412/566-4190.

—Kimberly K. Barlow