Giving up your personal vehicle in favour of car sharing is a way for millennials to “have it all,” according to a local car share co-operative.
An Insights West survey recently found that 22 per cent of millennials in Metro Vancouver have relied on car-sharing services to get around during the past year. Seventy per cent of millennials polled in the online survey agreed that car sharing appears to be an attractive transportation option for their age group.
“(Millennials) want, on some level, instant gratification, and they don’t want to compromise,” said Selena McLachlan, director of marketing for car share co-op, Modo. “Car sharing is a way to have it all, because you don’t have to compromise other pursuits to afford car payments.”
According to BCAA, the average cost of car ownership is $9,000 per year. McLachlan places the cost of being a car share user at $1,500 per year.
McLachlan also attributes the rise in car sharing’s popularity in cities like New Westminster to an increase in population density, and easily accessible transit that makes the decision to forgo privately-owned vehicles more realistic.
New Westminster currently has 15 Modo cars stationed in neighbourhoods around the city. The cars are shared among 485 members. Megan te Boekhorst, who lives in Uptown, has been a car share user since April 2015 and can see why it’s an appealing alternative to owning a car in the eyes of fellow millennials.
“I think (car sharing) and millennials complement each other quite well,” te Boekhorst said.
The decision to become a Modo co-op member came when te Boekhorst, who owns a body care line, had to transport 100 units of product from her home in New Westminster, to a market showing in downtown Vancouver. With no car of her own and transit an impractical option, te Boekhorst was thankful for the Modo car fleet’s versatility.
“I think what millennials really like is diversity and choice. (With our fleet) they can take a sports car one day, a pick-up truck for a move the next,” McLachlan said.
Mayor Jonathan Cote said the city is also encouraging increased use of car-sharing services. In 2014, the city partnered with TransLink to promote car sharing as a sustainable form of transportation, through its TravelSmart New Westminster program.
“We’re very supportive and we’re working to expand the amount of (car share) options available,” Cote said.
Although there is the potential downside of having your preferred car share vehicle booked by someone else when you need it, te Boekhorst says part of the enjoyment of the car share experience is not being confined to one type of vehicle as you would be if you owned your own car.
“It’s fun testing out new cars! It’s like you get to go test driving whenever you want.”
