Car Club & Active Travel

Car Club Boosts Levels of Walking & Cycling

Today our streets have in the most part been planned around the private car. This has led to an ever-increasing escalation in congestion, poor air quality and dangers posed to other road/pavement users. All of which have made walking and cycling more and more unattractive. We know however that such active modes of travel improve health, quality of life and the environment, and local productivity, while at the same time reducing costs to the public purse. These are substantial ‘win-wins’ that benefit individual people and the community as a whole.

Car clubs play a key role in driving this modal shift away from the private car. Each Car Club car takes 20 private cars* off the road. This means the more Car Club wheels that hit the tarmac the fewer cars there are on the roads overall, creating space for urban realm improvements and healthier streets. What’s more the Car Club cars produce 27% lower emissions (PM2.5) than the average car*, so air quality is further enhanced over and above a simple reduction in traffic.

Car clubs free up road capacity for active travel, making it safer and more attractive to the wider community. Car Club members themselves after joining are likely to walk more and cycle more than they did prior to obtaining membership. Research shows that up to 61% of car club members use public transport at least once a week, and up to 37% have used a bicycle as frequently – compared to an average of just 20% of people cycling more than once a week*. This is because Car Club members have a greater propensity to opt for these active travel modes for smaller localised journeys, using a car only when really needed.

*2021 research from shared transport charity Collaborative Mobility