A friend of mine was telling me about the GoCar Car Sharing service last night, and it sounds really good! It looks very similar to the City Car Club, which I was a member of when I lived in Edinburgh.
The basis behind the scheme is to allow you to rent a car for a couple of hours at a time. Owning and maintaining your own car for occasional use can be very expensive, and hiring a car by the day for a simple errand is a bit over-the-top. And so, this service lets you hire a car by the hour.
The cars are positioned around the city, and you can check online when they’re free, and book one for the time you need. Then swipe your smartcard at the car, and you’re away – and they automatically bill you for the time/distance you use at the end of the month.
It’s ideal for the odd trip to an out-of-town shopping mall, or for a visit to friends across town – and like I said, it’s much less expensive and hassle-free than owning your own car!