The Zipcar crisis: our open letter to London

Dear Mayor Khan and Mayor Dacres,

Re: Closure of Zipcar UK and urgent need for coordinated support for car clubs in London

We are writing as a broad coalition of organisations representing business, environmental, transport, and community interests. Together, we are extremely disappointed to see Zipcar announce its withdrawal from the UK. As we have seen from the public reaction to this announcement, this disappointment is shared by much of the public in London, forcing many people to reconsider the need to own a car.

This decision represents a significant setback for the delivery of the Mayor’s Transport Strategy and the decarbonisation of transport in London, something which is key to both Mayoral and Borough climate targets. It raises urgent questions about how policy conditions in our city are harmful to car sharing services.

Car clubs can provide a scalable, cost-effective and flexible way for Londoners and local businesses to access shared vehicles, many of which are electric, exactly when they need them. They should be a vital part of the city’s sustainable transport ecosystem. Car clubs can give people the confidence to live without owning a private car, helping reduce household costs, cut congestion, free up street space, and accelerate progress toward a cleaner, healthier city.

At a time when London is working hard to reduce emissions, improve air quality and expand sustainable travel options, the loss of a major electric car club operator is deeply concerning. In Clean Cities’ 2023 report, London ranked 30thout of 42 cities in deploying electric car clubs – ranking behind major cities including Paris, Rome, Brussels and Berlin. Without decisive action to ensure the viability of car clubs, London risks falling even further behind other global cities that are leveraging shared, electric mobility as a cornerstone of their climate and transport strategies.

We believe that this situation calls for the Mayor of London and London boroughs to work together with urgency to create more favourable conditions for car clubs to operate and expand. In particular, we encourage you to jointly consider the following measures:

• ‍Intervene in the current situation: The GLA, TfL and London Councils should work with CoMoUK, boroughs and operators on an urgent plan to fill the gap left by this departure, including a coordinated approach to the now-empty bays which allows other car club operators the opportunity to step in, as well as other sustainable transport modes.
• ‍Use the Mayor’s and TEC’s convening power to drive coordinated action across London: Fragmented policies and differing local approaches undermine the scalability and reliability of car clubs. We urge you to establish a shared, stable framework that provides clarity and long-term support for car sharing in London.
• ‍The reduction of parking costs for car clubs: High and inconsistent parking charges across boroughs create significant financial barriers to running a viable shared-vehicle network. Radically bringing down costs would materially support operators’ ability to invest in their fleets, maintain wide area coverage, and support the electrification of the fleet.
• ‍Create the right environment for electric car-club expansion: Boroughs and the Mayor should work together to radically improve the provision of EV charging infrastructure for car clubs in London, along with a close examination of the other factors behind the high operating costs of car club EVs in London, with actions to improve the financial position on each of them.

Without coordinated leadership and pragmatic policy adjustments, the departure of Zipcar will dent London’s reputation as a world-leading city for innovative, low-carbon mobility. The withdrawal of London’s main car club operator should be a wake-up call, but it is also an opportunity to redefine and strengthen the conditions needed for car clubs to grow, compete and serve communities across the capital and deliver the associated modal shift and environmental benefits. This is an opportunity to claim the mantle of leadership in car clubs and show other cities what good policy looks like.

‍Given the urgency of this issue, we request a joint meeting with you both at the earliest opportunity to discuss immediate actions and a shared approach to safeguarding and expanding shared electric mobility in London.

We would welcome the chance to work with you and your teams to ensure that car sharing becomes a central pillar of London’s transport and climate strategy.

Yours sincerely,