carsharing
Sign in to savethumb|BlueSG electric car parked at a car sharing parking. Carsharing or car sharing (AU, NZ, CA, TH, & US) or car clubs (UK) refers to several models of car rental or car use, where people rent cars for short periods of time, often by the hour. Unlike traditional car rental, collecting and returning the vehicle is often self-service through a mobile app and without entering an office or agency. It also often differs in the length of hire and the cost structure. In some models a commercial company owns the fleet and offers it for member use (business-to-consumer). In other models the owners ar
Article
17 sectionsContents
- History
- 1940s–1970s: European Cooperative Origin
- 1980s–1990s: Growth and North American introduction
- Early 2000s: Commercialisation and technological disruption
- 2020s and future: Global scale and electric integration
- Market size
- Types of car sharing
- Business-to-consumer
- Round trip/Station-based car sharing
- One-way/free-floating car sharing
- Peer-to-peer car sharing
- Technology
- Environmental and social impacts
- Economic incentives
- See also
- References
- External links
thumb|BlueSG electric car parked at a car sharing parking. Carsharing or car sharing (AU, NZ, CA, TH, & US) or car clubs (UK) refers to several models of car rental or car use, where people rent cars for short periods of time, often by the hour. Unlike traditional car rental, collecting and returning the vehicle is often self-service through a mobile app and without entering an office or agency. It also often differs in the length of hire and the cost structure. In some models a commercial company owns the fleet and offers it for member use (business-to-consumer). In other models the owners are private individuals who organise as a cooperative or ad hoc grouping, or list their vehicles with a separate car sharing facilitator (peer-to-peer). Car sharing is part of a larger trend of shared mobility.
Car sharing began in Europe in the late 1940s, before spreading to North America, and is now an international phenomenon. The 2024 global market size for car sharing was valued at US$ 4.7 billion to 8.9 billion. Car sharing is growing: projections of the 2033 global market size range from US$14.3 to 24.4 billion. Europe was the global car sharing leader in 2024, with the highest adoption and market share at 38%. Emerging markets include Latin America, the Middle East and Africa, driven by demographic trends, economic development, and regulatory change.