Autonomous cars should not be privately possessed, says Zipcar
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Zipcar UK`s general manager has said very autonomous vehicles should not be privately possessed in the future.
Jonathan Hampson, the UK-boss of the car sharing company, said Zipcar would adapt its business model to include autonomous vehicles and in the future and would help lead the way with the fresh technology.
He told AM: «For autonomous vehicles to work for cities like London they can`t be privately wielded, it has to be collective ownership.
«Zipcar is the global leader with collective ownership so I think when the time comes we will certainly have a part to play with autonomous vehicles and making them available as part of our fleet.»
Hampson believes privately-owned autonomous vehicles would further congest cities with cars making individual trips rather than collective ones.
Autonomous vehicles and access to them through car clubs are likely to play a part in Mobility as a Service (MaaS) which will reduce the need for personally possessed modes of transportation. It works by combining transport from public and private providers in a unified way to create and manage a journey from one account.
Hampson believes Transport for London (TfL) would have to step in as an independent party to administer MaaS services in cities in the future as companies are unlikely to share customer information unless it`s going to an unbiased third-party.
A MaaS pilot is already running in the West Midlands with five hundred customers. Those involved in the trial will have access to bus, metro, rail, car hire and cycle hire all through one app on their smartphone. Other services will be added as the pilot progresses. It being delivered by a commercial provider, MaaS Global.
The potential success of MaaS raises questions about the current structure of the automotive retail market. Large dealer groups and manufacturers are already thinking about what part they will have to play in a MaaS future.
However, dealers have voiced doubt at how quickly car buyers will abandon the current ownership model and the potential for MaaS to take off with mainstream customers.
Nigel McMinn, Lookers managing director, said: «If you look at the emotional side of things, most people have an attachment to their car. They align themselves to a brand, or they want a specific model, trim or colour. It`s very private.
«Yes you could have tiers of MaaS subscriptions that would give you ensured access to a premium brand, but I think those types of customers truly want a specific car. A PCP offers them their own car, they can leave the dog blanket and baby seats in it, it`s sat on their drive to use whenever they want and they chose the colour and the spec down to the last detail.
«There`s nothing presently in the mass market where that I`ve seen where I think, yes, that`s the Spotify of the future for automotive. That`s not to say someone could come along and invent it.»
Zipcar has enlargened its car sharing fleet from 1,500 in London to 1,800 with three hundred fresh petrol Volkswagen Polos as part of its fresh Ripple suggest.
Hampson said for every car club car, Ten.Five privately wielded vehicles are taken off the road as they sell them to join the service.
Ripple permits customers to make one-way journeys for the very first time, rather than having to do a round tour.
Zipcar hopes the fresh service will help to make car sharing more mainstream and has launched primarily across four London boroughs – Southwark, South Lambeth, Wandsworth and Merton. Prices embark from 29p a minute and can be dropped off in any designated «Zipzone» parking spot across those areas.
Carplus, the not-for- profit, environmental transport NGO, set up to promote the collective transport sector, is hoping for one million car club members in London by 2025.
There are presently 130,000 Zipcar members across London so reaching the overall target will require a massive thrust in the next few years.