Social Innovation: Car Sharing will be Big News in the U.S. in 2012

In 2012 car-sharing will become a popular social enterprise initiative in America as more states start to opt in - imagine a world with fewer cars, without traffic jams, and with less pollution. The actual concept of car-sharing is where members have access to a fleet of cars for short-term use throughout the day, which reduces the need for one or more personal vehicles. In California, which passed legislation last year, personal car-sharing is becoming very popular. Next to follow suit is Oregon, which will become the second place to let people rent out their cars.

Getaround is a social enterprise car sharing service which enables car owners to safely rent out their under-used cars to a community of trusted drivers. So people in need of a car can rent one by the hour using the Getaround website or iPhone app. Getaround is a business passionate about using mobile technology to create sustainable transportation solutions. It wants to empower people to travel more efficiently and cause a shift from personal to shared transport. Jessica Scorpio, cofounder of Getaround, says that her company plans not only national but also international domination. She states, "People love the variety of cars being shared. We have Priuses, BMWs and Teslas. It's an alternative to traditional car sharing, but also car rental".

Car-sharing is a new concept in urban transportation and is growing dramatically. In San Diego, another company called Car2Go has a fleet of 300 smart electric cars. In Austin, Texas, it it is a thriving social enterprise with 20,000 members and 300 cars with more than 5,000 rentals so far.

On average, personal car-sharing works out at $7 to $8 an hour, or $40 a day. People can set their own rates. Everybody is fully insured, which is the whole point of enabling legislation for this social enterprise scheme. In the state of Oregon, both houses passed legislature which set insurance rules and legalises personal car sharing. This will allow users to make a monthly income of $400, simply by letting people use their cars while they're working - genius!

Car sharing is an energy-saving social enterprise idea, and North Americans are starting to see the benefits of "no car ownership hassles" which many Europeans have already known about. Car share programs are in place in many European cities, serving more than an estimated 150,000 members. Now these programs are springing up across North America and cars will be at last earning their keep. It will also help to ease congestion and reduce CO2 emissions.

Photo Credit: Dominic's pics