Car clubs to receive extra government funding

Membership of car clubs allows access to vehicles for short periods of time, often by the hour, on a pay-as-you-go basis. The number of members of such clubs has increased from just 22,000 in 2007 to more than 127,114 members to date.

The Government views such schemes as an effective way of tackling congestion, reducing the level of CO₂ emissions and improving the quality of life of citizens and communities.

Members tend to choose to travel fewer miles by car compared to private car owners and the vehicles they do drive are more efficient.

Baker said: ’Each car-club vehicle can result in taking 24 private vehicles off the road and the vehicles used typically emit around 33 per cent less CO₂ than the average car.’

Antonia Roberts, Director of Carplus - the national charity supporting car-club development, commented: ’£40,000 may seem like a relatively small amount of funding but the DfT’s announcement signifies valuable support for car clubs, which can save individuals, businesses and local authorities money, reduce emissions and support sustainable transport objectives.’