It’s a fact, even as the leaves leave us and the plushness of summertime evades, Toronto is going greener – environmentally speaking. While frostbitten hipsters pedal their fixed-gears throughout the frigid winter months, there’s a better way to get around town when the ‘stunning reliability’ of the TTC just won’t do and your bike chain’s frozen solid. Complete with ample heating and your own soundtrack, there’s stiff competition between the trifecta of car sharing companies around Hogtown. This breakdown should give you some educated insight on which vehicle service is best for you…
AutoShare
Giving you the “Keys to Wonderful” AutoShare has over 175 self-serve pickup locations for their fleet of rental cars and full-size cargo vans in the city of Toronto. Available to rent by the hour or for multiple days, their versatile fleet of vehicles is limited to those 21 or over with a full class “G” license and a clean driving record. Membership registration will run you $29 and fare plans range from $45 annually to $25 per month depending on how often you’d like to use it. Check availability and reserve your vehicle online or through an app on your smartphone, swipe your membership card to unlock the vehicle and be on your merry way. Make sure you note where you pick up your car – there’s no excuse for forgetting your parking spot – these wheels must return from where they came. Also remember to do a walk-around inspection of the car before you take off – no one wants to get charged for another driver’s mystery stains on the back seat!
Zipcar
Zipcar operates in much the same was as AutoShare, in that they’ve got a diverse roster of vehicles, reservations can be made online or through an app (phone reservations might require additional fees), and cars must be returned to the location in which they were picked up. There are a variety of different plan options, from no monthly commitment and a rate of $9.25 per hour ($79 per day) up to $50 a month with six hours of pre-paid driving and discounts if you go over. All memberships require a $30 non-refundable registration fee. Zipcar comes with inclusive insurance and gas, as well as 200km of free mileage, compared to AutoShare’s 150km limit before extra charges are incurred. Aside from some differences in fees, the main benefit to Zipcar may be that their pickup locations tend to stretch a bit further than their competitors. Zipcar also offers a couple of luxury vehicles in their fleet, including the Audi A4 and MINI Cooper. So, if you’re a mature-ish 21-year-old student at York University and you’d like to park your bike up on campus, grab a stylin’ A4 and grab that Freshman chick you met in the caf the other day for your date to the Olive Garden… yeah, Zipcar could be the way to go.
Car2Go
Car2Go is the youngest of the three Toronto car share services, however they’ve taken a different angle than the other guys. Going back to that “green” mentality, Car2Go exclusively stocks SmartCars. What they lack in versatility, they make up for in fuel-efficient gas and electric vehicles that drives as young as 19 can parallel park in about as much space as a Bixi. Taking their environmentally sound approach one step further, they’re interested in saving you time as well. Car2Go charges by the minute, the hour, or the day – never for more than you’ve used it – and you can drop off these li’l guys at any Car2Go parking spot. Gas, insurance and a GPS system are included in every vehicle, and they even give you an incentive to fill up the tank for the next driver using their pre-paid gas cards (20 minutes of free driving if you fill up the tank when it drops below one quarter). Aside from spatial issues, Car2Go has the most limited number of pickup/drop-off locations, extending west to Jane, east to Victoria Park, and only as far north as Eglinton.
Have you used any of these car share services? What’s your experience been like? Let us know in the comment thread below or tweet us @ViewTheVibe!