Want to Join a Car Share? Here’s What to Expect

The little green driving machine is no longer with me and I found myself in-between a metaphorical rock and a hard place. Or, deciding if I should buy a new car or try something different. For awhile now, car share programs have held my interest and I decided that it was a great time to give it a try. If you’re thinking about using a car share to save money on transportation, this post will breakdown all of the different aspects that you should consider.

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What’s a Car Share?

Put simply, a car share program allows a pool of people to check out cars from around your town. People who may find this type of program attractive includes:

• Minimalists

• Environmental focused folks

• People who don’t want to deal with the expense of a car

• City dwellers

What is so attractive about using a car share and why did I join one. For those of you who are new to this blog and to me, you might not know that I learned how to drive as an adult. Yep, it was totally random that I never learned to drive. Part of why that happened was-I was getting around town pretty easily without a car.

However, not knowing how to drive in a city like Denver was socially awkward. And, it was incredibly difficult to go to the mountains without a car because there is limited bus access. If I wanted to go hiking in one of the mountain towns, I would have to car pool to the location.

And, I was finding that I wanted to spend more and more time in the mountains so this was truly becoming an issue. Then, I knew that I would have a family in the future and I didn’t want to be driving around friends and family without several years of driving experience under my belt.

There are a number of car share programs out there:

• National programs such as Car2Go
• Maven which works primarily through an app
• ZipCar

I decided on a local non-profit program in the Denver/Boulder metro area called eGo CarShare. Whenever possible, I prefer to work with locally based businesses and it was my view that working with a non-profit would allow me to meet the team that runs the organization.

In fact, I’ve had some random things that have come up (totally my fault) and the team knew who I was and were able to help me immediately…while laughing their butts off.

Some Things to Consider

Before you commit to a car share program there are a few things that you need to consider.

• What do you really like to use your car for? Look at your habits. I live in a central location, am within walking distance to 3 light rail stops, 5 grocery stores, and a farmers’ market during the summer. And, I currently work from home. I also have access to ride shares within 1-2 minutes of making a request…at anytime of day. And, I order my groceries a couple of times a month as well as get HelloFresh once a month. Basically, I’m not using a car. BUT, I like to attend Meetups/Go Hiking/go on the occasional road trip and enjoy taking my mom to mother/daughter stuff.

• What are your current transportation costs? When I had my car each month was averaging a little under $300. It was a paid off car but my insurance was expensive (I opted to be covered for everything at a higher rate) gas, and maintenance related expenses. Work your numbers and look at the last year to see how much you’re actually spending to use your car.

• Monthly Expense-Currently I pay a monthly fee of $12 as well as any usage fees plus gas. The gas is .33 a mile up to 50 miles and then .20 for every mile after that. And the hourly rate is $4.50. In the case of the program that I use, I can run a credit balance on my account.

• Type of Cars-Don’t laugh but….the cars that I can borrow are all really new. I was used to driving a 2001 Nissan and these are 2017 Prius’ and other hybrid cars that don’t need a freaking key to turn the car on. Sometimes I have a hard time figuring out how to use the car and have to call in for assistance.

• Car Locations and the Return Process-Depending on the program you use, you may need to return the car to a designated space, or return it to the place that you originally picked it up. The car that I use is about 6 blocks from my house. It’s incredibly convenient and I love that it’s easy for me to reserve, pick up, and return.

• Travel-Will you be in town or away for awhile? I plan on traveling for a good part of the second half of this year. I love that I won’t have to worry about moving my car during street sweeping, worry about hail damage (big thing in Colorado), or have my mom check on my car while I’m gone.

The Experience So Far

The first couple of months were a learning process and they were the most expensive so far. I was getting a feel for what I really wanted to use the service for and how early I needed to reserve it so that I had it for the times that I needed it. At the time of this post I only used it once during the previous month.

I anticipate using the car quite a bit during the summer months as I have some road trips planned and it’s prime hiking season. The great thing is I can use a trip planner so that I can figure out how much I will end up spending for the trip.

Before I began driving I was really concerned about having a car loan as I was trying to pay off debt. But, not having regular access to a car and not knowing how to drive affected:

• My social life-People get TIRED of driving your butt around. But, I still really enjoy it, so don’t worry if you ask me to drive you somewhere.

• Jobs/Side-Hustes-There were a number of jobs and side-hustles that I couldn’t apply for because I couldn’t drive. And, once I learned how to drive, I had to wait 2 years in order to become eligible to do side-hustles such as Lyft/Uber (I haven’t driven with them) but, if I wanted to…I couldn’t.

• Life flexibility-I’m a huge fan of public transportation. And, because of where I live, it’s pretty reliable. However, if I want to go to a farm dinner, the suburbs, the mountains, it’s a huge pain in the butt…because it doesn’t run as frequently as most people need it.

Those are three huge areas in my life that have become much easier as a result of learning this one freaking skill. If you’re an adult who is waiting to learn how to drive, don’t be embarrassed. Get a great instructor and make sure they are trained to teach ADULTS how to drive and respect your fears and concerns.

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Michelle

I am an obsessive foodie, but not self-righteous with it, love travel, meeting new people, helping you look good, and am freaked out by people who don't enjoying reading...something! Grab a Perrier, read my blog, feel free to drop me a line! Hope to hear from you soon.

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