Car sharing scheme hits the road

nlnews@archant.co.uk
06 August 2009

HARINGEY'S first on-street car-sharing scheme has revved into action, with 27 cars available for hire at 14 locations.

The car club scheme, run by Streetcar, is part of Haringey Council's bid to ease parking problems and reduce exhaust emissions.

It will cost £59.50 per year for residents, with the firm offering £20 worth of driving credit to new customers quoting the code "Hgy30" when joining.

The scheme offers access to a Volkswagen Golf, Polo or Transporter van on a pay-as-you-go basis, from as little as 30 minutes up to six months. Usage charges are based on how long you have the car and how far you drive, but the council says the scheme cuts out the high cost of owning, insuring and taxing your own car.

The new scheme bolsters the seven existing off-street locations available to residents, making a total of 34 vehicles available.

Each car club car typically replaces 10 private cars, according to a 2008 survey of Carplus national car club members. Councillor Brian Haley, cabinet member for environment and conservation, said: "This is a great step forward for the many people in Haringey who own cars but rarely use them.

"As well as catering to residents who rarely use their vehicles, we hope the car club will make people think twice before buying a second car for their family.

"Our aim is to become one of London's greenest boroughs and having this car club operational means that we have another option for cutting vehicle carbon emissions while reducing congestion and easing strain on parking."

The council plans to have at least one vehicle within a five minute walk of every resident by April 2011, with 80 parking bays.

To join, you can visit www.streetcar.co.uk or call 0845 644 8475.

Cars located at:

Church Road, N6 (Two vehicles)

Cranbrook Park, N22 (Two vehicles)

Cromwell Avenue, N6 (Two vehicles)

Denton Road, N8 (Two vehicles)

Hillside Gardens, N6 (Two vehicles)

Langham Road, N15 (Two vehicles)

Mafeking Road, N17 (Two vehicles)

Priory Gardens, N6 (Two vehicles)

Springfield Avenue, N10 (Two vehicles)

Tariff Road, N17 (Two vehicles)

Terront Road, N15 (One vehicle)

Tottenham Lane, N8 (Two vehicles)

Victoria Road, N4 (Two vehicles)