Dozens of organisations have written to the Mayor of London demanding urgent action to keep car clubs viable in the capital, ahead of an emergency City Hall meeting tomorrow where officials will face questions over Zipcar’s imminent departure.
The letter, sent Monday and signed by London Assembly Members, environmental groups including Clean Cities, academics and rival car club operators, warns that Zipcar’s withdrawal at year-end is a “significant setback” for the Mayor’s climate and transport goals. It calls the decision a “wake-up call” that London is falling behind other global cities on shared electric mobility.
“Without decisive action to ensure the viability of car clubs, London risks falling even further behind,” the signatories wrote, arguing that policy conditions in the city have become “harmful to car sharing services.”
Four-point action plan
The letter outlines four main policy recommendations for City Hall and Transport for London:
- Drawing up an urgent plan to fill the gap left by Zipcar’s departure, ensuring residents who relied on the service maintain access to shared vehicles.
- Coordinating efforts across London boroughs to support car club operations, addressing the current patchwork of local policies that create operational challenges.
- Reducing parking costs for car club operators, who face rising expenses as the Congestion Charge increases 20% to £18 and loses its electric vehicle exemption.
- Radically increasing electric vehicle charging infrastructure to reduce the burden on car club operators who must charge their fleets.
Mayor promises talks
A spokesperson for the Mayor told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “The Mayor welcomes this letter and recognises that car clubs can provide convenient access to vehicles – including electric vehicles – for key journeys that can’t be made by public transport.”
TfL and the Mayor’s teams are meeting with stakeholders including boroughs and car club operators “over the coming days” to discuss short-term challenges and longer-term solutions, the spokesperson said.
Tomorrow, Deputy Mayor for Transport Seb Dance and TfL’s Director of Transport Strategy Christina Calderato will appear before the London Assembly Transport Committee to answer questions about Zipcar’s withdrawal.
From warning to withdrawal
Putney.news first reported in July that Zipcar was warning the Congestion Charge changes could make car clubs “commercially unviable.” The company’s General Manager told MPs in September the removal of the 100% electric vehicle discount was the key concern.
When Zipcar announced its UK withdrawal in early December, the timing appeared to confirm those warnings. The company will cease operations on 31 December.
Car clubs allow members to access vehicles by the minute, hour or day, either from dedicated parking bays or street locations. They’re considered crucial to the Mayor’s strategy to reduce private car ownership and decongest London’s roads.
The organised pressure campaign and emergency meeting signal growing concern that policy decisions are undermining rather than supporting this shift toward shared transport.
