Model – Electric Cars in Paris
Posted in Models, Research by Rob Eales on July 29th, 2008
The section below is republished with permission from the Going Solar Transport Newsletter #68, 15 July 2008, compiled by Stephen Ingrouille. Going Solar, www.goingsolar.com.au/transport.
Electric Cars in Paris
“First came self-service bicycles. Now Paris is to provide electric cars that drivers can pick up and drop off anywhere in the city. Mayor Bertrand Delanoe has announced that, from the end of next year, 4000 electric cars will be placed around Paris and its outskirts for drivers in the scheme to help themselves for short journeys. … In less than a year, Paris’ army of cheap, on-street hire-bicycles, called Velib, has transformed transport habits. The company behind that scheme, JCDecaux, has had talks with the City of Melbourne to launch a similar scheme in Australia. The fleet of carbon-neutral hire cars, called Autolib, is the Socialist Mayor’s next phase in green transport. Paris city hall said 700 Autolib pick-up points would be set up, including 200 underground. Recharging points would be scattered across Paris.
‘There will be a computerised system which allows you as soon as you collect the car to announce where you’ll drop it off, so there will be a parking space available’, Mr Delanoe said. It would operate much like the Velib bike scheme. Users would take out an annual subscription or be able to approach a hire point on the spur of the moment or perhaps pay by using their public transport pass. One target group is young couples with children who occasionally need a car but cannot afford to run their own.â€
Ref: Angelique Chrisafis, The Age, 21/6/08, URL
