For my job I sometimes need a car...esp. for the weddings out of the city. But I don't need a car enough to justify the cost of actually owning one...I do after all live downtown. The problem is I usually need it an insanely early time (like 6 am) so using a reg. car rental service doesn't really work b/c I'd have to rent the car the night before and deal w/ parking, gas etc. Up until now I've been using Zipcar which is also a great service. They have a parking lot w/ a couple of cars literally 30 secs from my apt. and I can book online so obviously it's an easy choice for me. But a lot of times I need the car for a full day and it gets expensive on the weekends...w/ tax it's a little over $100 :( .
Then I heard about Car2Go. They are currently holding a promotional offer where they are waiving the sign up fee...I thought why not check it out I literally have nothing to lose! Unlike Zipcar they don't have a membership fee either...big + in my book. Esp. considering I'm really an occasional driver...maybe once or twice a mth and that's usually just during wedding season.
Both car rental services include gas and insurance in the rental...although I think Zipcar has a lower deductible. The thing that really was pulling me more toward Car2Go though was the day rate...it's only $65.99 compared to $94 w/ Zipcar (on weekends)..that's almost $30...that's a BIG savings in my book! Plus Car2Go also has GPS in their cars...I'm VERY directional challenged and this is a HUGE plus for me!
I should mention though Car2Go is a fleet of Smart Cars so not exactly your prime vehicle option if you're looking to move large loads or multiple ppl lol.
Another big difference w/ the Car2Go cars is that you get FREE parking in over 200 Green P parking lots in Toronto...umm yeah parking can be such a hassle and huge cost in the city! Unlike Zipcar you don't have to return the Car2Go car to it's "Home Base" parking spot (same spot you picked it up in). Car2Go has a "Home Area" and you can leave the car when you're done w/ it any registered Car2Go spot...and you can find the nearest or most convenient one w/ the GPS I think. This is great if you only needed the car for one way...you don't have to worry about the hassle of getting it back to the other location.
As well you don't have to reserve a car w/ Car2Go...you need a car...go online or call and find out where the nearest one to you is and go get it...hassle free! You have a swipe card (like Zipcar) to get in the car and once inside you have a pin # so the car can charge your account for usage.
You can also reserve a car online similar to the Zipcar service (but you can only do it max. 24 hrs in advance). You can also choose which location you'd like to pick it up in...I'm not quite sure about the details on this part though....I don't know if they move a car to make sure there is one that designated Car2Go parking area or if they tell you another location if that one doesn't have a car at it...when I used it yesterday there were actually 3 Car2Go cars in my parking lot...hopefully that lot remains a popular "Home" for the cars lol (again less than 30 secs from my apt...yeah downtown living)!
If you do reserve a car you can also cancel it as close as 15 mins before your scheduled reservation w/out any charges...w/ Zipcar it's 3 hrs before for short reservations and up to 24 hrs before for full day reservations.
So w/ all these great benefits AND the lower day rate I think I'm going to be sticking to Car2Go from now on...plus I'm sure they will be expanding quickly which will hopefully mean more cars across the city making it more convenient for everyone!
Happy Occasional Driving Everyone!
