As many of you know, eGo CarShare (formerly Boulder CarShare) has been a central part of my life since we first launched back in 2001. I continue to be very committed to seeing our organization grow and thrive in the Metro area, but the time is right to make some changes – both for me personally, as well as organizationally for eGo CarShare.
With our recent software transition behind us, we have the opportunity to restructure and streamline some of our positions. I’m also personally looking to ‘restructure’ my life in a way that affords me the flexibility to spend more time with my family in the Midwest. (I would not have been able to help start Boulder CarShare without the help and support of my family, and it’s time for me to return that support.) Therefore, in the upcoming months I’ll be passing the torch to a new Executive Director and we’re also consolidating our Member Support and Billing positions.
I’ll be staying on as ED until we have hired a new ED who will lead our organization on to another exciting chapter in our organization’s future, at which point I will shift more fully to Operations Management and/or an advising capacity, which will allow me more flexibility and time for family.
Our new and improved software system is also allowing us to restructure some of our internal operations, so we are currently hiring for a Member Support/Billing Manager extraordinaire.
Both of our job postings are on our blog. If you would like to become a more active part of the eGo CarShare team, we welcome you to apply.
I look forward to this new chapter in my life, as well as a new phase for eGo CarShare.
I would like to thank our board, staff, and all our members and various partners for your support throughout the years. We wouldn’t be where we are today without your help, support, and involvement.
With appreciation,
Karen Worminghaus
Executive Director
eGo CarShare
https://carshare.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/CoCarshare_horiz_color-300x56.png00CO CarSharehttps://carshare.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/CoCarshare_horiz_color-300x56.pngCO CarShare2016-09-06 09:05:592016-09-06 09:05:59Update from the Director – Come Growth with Us!
We hope you are enjoying our new system, particularly the enhanced mobile web site. If you haven’t already done so, we encourage you to review the various software tutorials we have posted recently on our blog.
We use a new real-time-billing (RTB) system to calculate the charges on your statement:
The full cost of each trip (including actual mileage plus any additional fees and credits) should be charged to your payment card on file about 2-5 days after the end of each reservation.
You can see the costs associated with each trip and the date of individual payment charges during the current month in the Account Statement screen.
Toward the top of the Account Statement screen is an amount listed as “Processed Transactions Amount.” This represents the cost of all your recent trips for which we have received (‘processed’) billing data from your vehicle booking. Anytime this amount is more than $1 you can expect this amount to be charged to your card the next day.
Occasionally you will see that some of your trip charges will be bundled together, as we don’t always get usage data needed for billing back from each car every day.
If you were charged for multiple trips on July 28th or August 8th:
It took us a few days to get everything set-up in our new system and to transfer over all the account data from our old system, hence we couldn’t process most automated charges between 7/21-7/27, so they were processed on 7/28.
There was another batch of trip charges from 7/29-8/7 that got bundled together and processed on 8/8.
Going forward trip charges should be processed on a near daily basis, but occasionally you will see that some of your trip charges will be bundled together since we don’t always get usage data back from each car every day.
The last several weeks were very busy for us and our small staff worked long hours to make operations go as smoothly as possible. We greatly appreciate your patience during this big transition.
Please Review your Account Details in our New Reservation System
In addition to verifying your account information online, there are a few extra steps required for certain accounts to get started. There are also several customization features available to all accounts which make vehicle reservations even easier.
On July 20, 2016 we also launched a new mobile Reservation / Booking System!
Over the next few weeks we’ll be posting tutorials and helpful tips about both desktop & mobile versions of our new system. We recommend using a desktop PC or Mac to verify your account information online. If you need help getting started, please review the tutorial on our previous blog posting.
On July 20, 2016 we switched to a new and improved carshare Reservation / Booking System!
Over the next few weeks we’ll be posting a variety of tutorials and helpful tips about how to use our new software. Please also feel free to contact us with questions and feedback. Click here to view our tutorial about How to Make a New Booking (Reservation).
We are transitioning software providers in July and this means our reservation system will look different, as will the monthly invoices you receive. We are confident that our new system will offer our members a much better user interface and mobile site experience.
We are happy to announce that once we are on the new system you will be billed for your total/actual trip cost a few days after your reservation, instead of the estimated trip cost as initially billed in our current system.
We will be communicating further updates with you in July and August. We ask for your patience in July as our small staff makes this very big transition. Rest assured you will still be able to access the cars and reach our dedicated staff if you experience any issues. As always, feel free to call us at 303.720.1185 if you have any questions.
https://carshare.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/CoCarshare_horiz_color-300x56.png00CO CarSharehttps://carshare.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/CoCarshare_horiz_color-300x56.pngCO CarShare2016-06-30 10:16:242016-06-30 10:16:24New Reservation Software Coming in July
Balfour at Riverfront Park in Denver is a natural fit for carsharing. Located right in the heart of downtown, this vibrant senior community houses 140 residents, has 100 staff and is ideally located to take advantage of all the great transportation options available nearby.
Ann O’Neill, a Resident Adviser on the Leasing and Marketing Team, loves taking the light rail to work, but needs a car to visit clients on the job. Carsharing with eGo CarShare, which has a car right outside the door of Balfour, was ideally suited to meet her needs.
She says, “I need the flexibility of a car to nurture relationships with clients but enjoy using the light rail rather than driving for my commute.” Carsharing not only gave her the ability to have access to a car without sitting in traffic coming into work but also solved an insurance issue related to transporting clients in personal cars and personal liability, since excellent insurance coverage is included in every eGo CarShare reservation.
eGo CarShare also makes it easy to use cars for business- instead of needing to be reimbursed for personal car usage and mileage, companies like Balfour can have a direct account with eGo CarShare and enjoy the low business rates offered to business and nonprofit groups. Brandi Williamson, Leasing Director for Balfour, says, “We appreciate the level of care taken to ensure that vehicles are clean and well maintained. Balfour is a luxury brand and the eGo CarShare vehicles are a wonderful way to accommodate our clients and provide convenient access to the staff.”
Ann remarked, “Everyone on the Leasing team uses the carshare cars,” and they have taken the cars to visit prospective clients in places like Thornton, Evergreen, and Arvada. Personal home visits and an in-depth assessment of clients’ needs, as well as driving prospective clients to see the Balfour sites or to other appointments, is all part of the extraordinary lengths Balfour goes to to create their community and work with potential clients to find the right fit for them.
With so many people in its community, Balfour has unique transportation needs. There is a private fleet of three vehicles to transport residents, as well as access to a weekly shuttle, and of course, all the transportation options of downtown Denver like transit from nearby Union Station and ridesharing. Carsharing is a great addition to these options, as it allows residents the freedom and independence of access to a personal vehicle even if they do not have their own.
Balfour has chosen to limit the amount of on-site parking in an effort to be “good stewards in an urban setting.” Ann says, “We encourage ourselves, our residents and their visitors to take advantage of the new Denver” and all the options that are available so close by. Residents do have the option to pay for parking their own cars on-site, but carsharing can be an elegant solution to save money and continue to have access to a personal vehicle if residents want to drive without owning personally.
Balfour knows they can rely on eGo CarShare to meet their needs. Not only is the Riverfront Prius (V #202) right outside their door, but there are a number of other cars close by including the new Union Station spot (V #205). Like all eGo CarShare members, Balfour staff and residents have access to all 53 cars in Denver, Boulder and Longmont including all-wheel drives and pickup trucks. And should an issue arise, they know a staff member is just a phone call away 24/7. As Brandi puts it, “the best part of our carsharing usage is the continued support and efforts from eGo staff to educate our team on efficient and easy usage. Staff have been responsive and better yet, proactive in assisting our team.”
To learn more about Balfour Senior Living, which provides independent living, assisted living and memory care in a setting that combines the amenities of a four star hotel with the comforts of a carefully designed residential setting, please visit http://balfourcare.com
https://carshare.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/CoCarshare_horiz_color-300x56.png00CO CarSharehttps://carshare.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/CoCarshare_horiz_color-300x56.pngCO CarShare2016-04-29 10:54:142016-04-29 10:54:14eGo CarShare & Balfour at Riverfront Park
Denver has an increasing amount of options when it comes to getting around, from carsharing and ridesharing to light rail and biking. While there have never been more options, eGo CarShare, as a nonprofit carsharing organization, is unique in what it can offer.
One challenge to shared mobility that eGo can help tackle is the goal of equity and access for all. Being a nonprofit means that we not only run a full scale carsharing service with 50+ cars, but we also receive grants to do things like bring carsharing to areas which might not be particularly profitable. For example, eGo CarShare was awarded a Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) grant through the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG) for 2014-2015 to create “Multi-modal Toolkits” for residents in various affordable housing neighborhoods in Boulder and Denver. Partial matching funding was provided by Mile High Connects and The Denver Foundation. eGo partnered with Boulder Housing Partners (BHP), Denver HousingAuthority (DHA) and Habitat for Humanity of Metro Denver (HFHMD) to provide select households with significantly subsidized monthly transit passes, free carshare memberships with discounted usage rates, free or discounted B-cycle memberships and/or access to pool bikes, and education about the multi-modal transportation options available to them. These public-private partnerships make it possible for us to provide not just carsharing but also greater mobility options to low-income areas.
Denver has made it possible to increase the visibility of all carshare services through its progressive on-street parking policies. These regulations have allowed us (and other carsharing services) to have designated on-street parking spaces, reserved specifically for our cars, something which does not exist in all cities. Having designated spaces on-street builds awareness of carsharing and therefore increases the number of people who use carsharing, because they see how convenient it can be and how easy cars are to access. Round-trip carsharing also helps to significantly ease parking demands as studies show each round-trip carsharing car replaces 9 -13 personally owned vehicles. This is because carshare members rely on a shared car rather than have their own or are able to get rid of a second vehicle while maintaining flexibility. Thus as vehicle ownership decreases, less space is needed for parking.
Participating in shared mobility is becoming an ever more viable option for people in Denver and beyond. eGo CarShare has over 50 locations in Denver, Boulder and Longmont and we hope to eventually expand to other surroundings communities, though population density to support carsharing and the relative newness of the carsharing concept can be challenging in new areas. eGo CarShare only requires two years of driving history and a valid license (which does not have to be in-state or even from the US) to apply for membership, making it a great option for college students, people visiting from other countries or others who wan a vehicle occasionally to get around. With no annual fees and carsharing rates starting at just $4.50/hour + $0.33/mile, including gas and insurance, sharing a car with eGo can also save a lot of money! AAA estimates in its 2015 study that it costs $7,606 a year to own your own car – you can afford to regularly use a LOT of other mobility options for well under $633/month without losing your flexibility and freedom and you’ll never have to deal with the hassles of car ownership.
Round-trip carsharing is meant to complement, rather than compete with, other mobility services like transit and bikeshare, creating even more transportation options as carshare locations expand around the city and beyond. Fewer cars on the road means less congestion, less emissions, improved environmental quality and better quality of life for communities – all goals eGo works toward as a local nonprofit.
We recently expanded our service area to include two locations in Longmont: a designated space at the lot at 6th and Coffman, approved by Longmont City Council January 26th, 2016 and another at Casa de la Esperanza at 1520 South Emery Street!
The Longmont expansion is part of a grant program to give better access to transportation options for low-income residents. This pilot project is a joint effort between eGo CarShare and Boulder County to create more awareness of transportation options and to increase resident mobility. The discounted program currently runs through December 2016, with hopes that there will be enough interest to stay in Longmont for the long term. Boulder County Housing Authority (BCHA) residents and Longmont Housing Authority (LHA) residents in Longmont receive free eGo memberships and significantly discounted rates. eGo CarShare is also waiving the application fee for the first 25 members of the general public who join using promo code LongmontFree! As always with eGo’s service, gas and insurance are included in every reservation.
eGo CarShare is committed to providing an affordable transportation option to as many local residents as possible while reducing the environmental and social impacts of personal car ownership. Research has shown that after joining a roundtrip carshare service like eGo, members walk 40% more, ride public transit 34% more, bike 18% more, and reduce their Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) by over 40%. Studies also show that every roundtrip carsharing vehicle on the road replaces 9 to 13 personal vehicles, encouraging members to either sell their car or avoid purchasing a new vehicle and freeing up parking in congested areas.
“We’re thrilled to be able to expand our network of vehicles to Longmont and bring new multimodal options to residents there. We feel that carsharing can bring great benefits to the community of Longmont, particularly for underserved populations,” said eGo CarShare’s Director, Karen Worminghaus.
Access to carsharing for the greater Longmont community will integrate effectively with Boulder County’s RideFree Longmont program, which allows all of Longmont’s local buses to be free for anyone to use. The Longmont carshare locations broaden our existing system of 32 vehicles in Boulder and 20 vehicles in Denver, all of which can be accessed via our 24/7 pay-as-you-drive system.
https://carshare.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/CoCarshare_horiz_color-300x56.png00CO CarSharehttps://carshare.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/CoCarshare_horiz_color-300x56.pngCO CarShare2016-01-27 13:46:072016-01-27 13:46:07eGo CarShare Expands in Longmont
Thanks to twenty three generous donors, we raised $2,337 on Colorado Gives Day to help low-income people gain access to much needed transportation through the NECO pass program!
These funds will be put to work in our 2015 Affordable Housing Transportation Toolkit program by supporting the Neighborhood Eco (NECO) Pass component. We will apply your donation to the neighborhood you specified (Red Oak Park in Boulder or Mariposa in Denver), or to the area with the greatest need if you did not specify a location preference.
Donations can still be made throughout the year via the Colorado Gives web site, and the sooner we can raise the matching funds the sooner we can renew the NECO Pass contracts for these neighborhoods so that residents do not have a lapse in coverage.
These funds make a HUGE different in people’s lives. A NECO pass can help some get to work, a much needed doctor’s appointment, a child’s activity or to a loved one’s house.
The recipients themselves say it best:
“This is a beautiful gift! Thank you so much for making it possible. Last month my car broke down and I was able to get to work and my children were able to catch the bus to school and this gift made it all painless and simple to adjust.”
– NECO Pass/Multi-modal Toolkit recipient
“This bus pass has played a huge role in making it possible for me to be more mobile. Next week, I will make my first ever trip to DIA with it. Additionally, the Multi-modal Toolkit through eGo CarShare changed my life. I am finally able to attend to my errands and needs at my own speed. This has a profound effect on the day-to-day quality of my life. Thank you.”
– NECO Pass/Multi-modal Toolkit recipient
Thank you again to all who donated!
https://carshare.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/CoCarshare_horiz_color-300x56.png00CO CarSharehttps://carshare.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/CoCarshare_horiz_color-300x56.pngCO CarShare2015-12-10 14:06:082015-12-10 14:06:08Thank You Colorado Gives Donors!
Update from the Director – Come Growth with Us!
Hello eGo CarShare Community,
As many of you know, eGo CarShare (formerly Boulder CarShare) has been a central part of my life since we first launched back in 2001. I continue to be very committed to seeing our organization grow and thrive in the Metro area, but the time is right to make some changes – both for me personally, as well as organizationally for eGo CarShare.
With our recent software transition behind us, we have the opportunity to restructure and streamline some of our positions. I’m also personally looking to ‘restructure’ my life in a way that affords me the flexibility to spend more time with my family in the Midwest. (I would not have been able to help start Boulder CarShare without the help and support of my family, and it’s time for me to return that support.) Therefore, in the upcoming months I’ll be passing the torch to a new Executive Director and we’re also consolidating our Member Support and Billing positions.
I’ll be staying on as ED until we have hired a new ED who will lead our organization on to another exciting chapter in our organization’s future, at which point I will shift more fully to Operations Management and/or an advising capacity, which will allow me more flexibility and time for family.
Our new and improved software system is also allowing us to restructure some of our internal operations, so we are currently hiring for a Member Support/Billing Manager extraordinaire.
Both of our job postings are on our blog. If you would like to become a more active part of the eGo CarShare team, we welcome you to apply.
I look forward to this new chapter in my life, as well as a new phase for eGo CarShare.
I would like to thank our board, staff, and all our members and various partners for your support throughout the years. We wouldn’t be where we are today without your help, support, and involvement.
With appreciation,
Karen Worminghaus
Executive Director
eGo CarShare
Billing Updates & Account Details
Please familiarize yourself with the new billing process by logging into your account.
Once you are logged in, please click this link to see your current “Account Statement” to view current activity in August. You may also click this link to see invoices from July 2016
We use a new real-time-billing (RTB) system to calculate the charges on your statement:
If you were charged for multiple trips on July 28th or August 8th:
The last several weeks were very busy for us and our small staff worked long hours to make operations go as smoothly as possible. We greatly appreciate your patience during this big transition.
Account Settings Overview
Please Review your Account Details in our New Reservation System
In addition to verifying your account information online, there are a few extra steps required for certain accounts to get started. There are also several customization features available to all accounts which make vehicle reservations even easier.
Please click here to review our Account Settings manual.
Once your details are updated, click here to login for vehicle bookings.
New Booking System Tutorial (mobile)
On July 20, 2016 we also launched a new mobile Reservation / Booking System!
Over the next few weeks we’ll be posting tutorials and helpful tips about both desktop & mobile versions of our new system. We recommend using a desktop PC or Mac to verify your account information online. If you need help getting started, please review the tutorial on our previous blog posting.
Click here to view our tutorial about How to Make a New Booking with the Mobile Website.
Once you feel ready to try it out, click here to login to the new system.
New Booking System Tutorial (desktop)
On July 20, 2016 we switched to a new and improved carshare Reservation / Booking System!
Over the next few weeks we’ll be posting a variety of tutorials and helpful tips about how to use our new software. Please also feel free to contact us with questions and feedback. Click here to view our tutorial about How to Make a New Booking (Reservation).
Existing members, click here to login to the new system.
A few helpful login tips:
If you joined eGo CarShare before July 20, 2016, please login as follows:
INDIVIDUAL Member? –> Login using your usual Member ID # and Password.
HOUSEHOLD or Organizational Member? —> Your login has changed slightly.
If you can’t get logged in using your Member ID #, try your e-mail address instead (in conjunction with your usual carshare password).
If you still can’t get in:
New Reservation Software Coming in July
We will be communicating further updates with you in July and August. We ask for your patience in July as our small staff makes this very big transition. Rest assured you will still be able to access the cars and reach our dedicated staff if you experience any issues. As always, feel free to call us at 303.720.1185 if you have any questions.
eGo CarShare & Balfour at Riverfront Park
Balfour at Riverfront Park in Denver is a natural fit for carsharing. Located right in the heart of downtown, this vibrant senior community houses 140 residents, has 100 staff and is ideally located to take advantage of all the great transportation options available nearby.
Ann O’Neill, a Resident Adviser on the Leasing and Marketing Team, loves taking the light rail to work, but needs a car to visit clients on the job. Carsharing with eGo CarShare, which has a car right outside the door of Balfour, was ideally suited to meet her needs.
She says, “I need the flexibility of a car to nurture relationships with clients but enjoy using the light rail rather than driving for my commute.” Carsharing not only gave her the ability to have access to a car without sitting in traffic coming into work but also solved an insurance issue related to transporting clients in personal cars and personal liability, since excellent insurance coverage is included in every eGo CarShare reservation.
eGo CarShare also makes it easy to use cars for business- instead of needing to be reimbursed for personal car usage and mileage, companies like Balfour can have a direct account with eGo CarShare and enjoy the low business rates offered to business and nonprofit groups. Brandi Williamson, Leasing Director for Balfour, says, “We appreciate the level of care taken to ensure that vehicles are clean and well maintained. Balfour is a luxury brand and the eGo CarShare vehicles are a wonderful way to accommodate our clients and provide convenient access to the staff.”
Ann remarked, “Everyone on the Leasing team uses the carshare cars,” and they have taken the cars to visit prospective clients in places like Thornton, Evergreen, and Arvada. Personal home visits and an in-depth assessment of clients’ needs, as well as driving prospective clients to see the Balfour sites or to other appointments, is all part of the extraordinary lengths Balfour goes to to create their community and work with potential clients to find the right fit for them.
With so many people in its community, Balfour has unique transportation needs. There is a private fleet of three vehicles to transport residents, as well as access to a weekly shuttle, and of course, all the transportation options of downtown Denver like transit from nearby Union Station and ridesharing. Carsharing is a great addition to these options, as it allows residents the freedom and independence of access to a personal vehicle even if they do not have their own.
Balfour has chosen to limit the amount of on-site parking in an effort to be “good stewards in an urban setting.” Ann says, “We encourage ourselves, our residents and their visitors to take advantage of the new Denver” and all the options that are available so close by. Residents do have the option to pay for parking their own cars on-site, but carsharing can be an elegant solution to save money and continue to have access to a personal vehicle if residents want to drive without owning personally.
Balfour knows they can rely on eGo CarShare to meet their needs. Not only is the Riverfront Prius (V #202) right outside their door, but there are a number of other cars close by including the new Union Station spot (V #205). Like all eGo CarShare members, Balfour staff and residents have access to all 53 cars in Denver, Boulder and Longmont including all-wheel drives and pickup trucks. And should an issue arise, they know a staff member is just a phone call away 24/7. As Brandi puts it, “the best part of our carsharing usage is the continued support and efforts from eGo staff to educate our team on efficient and easy usage. Staff have been responsive and better yet, proactive in assisting our team.”
If you’re interested in becoming an eGo CarShare member, please visit https://carshare.org/2016dev/join-now
To learn more about Balfour Senior Living, which provides independent living, assisted living and memory care in a setting that combines the amenities of a four star hotel with the comforts of a carefully designed residential setting, please visit http://balfourcare.com
Nonprofit Carsharing Offers Unique Benefits
Denver has an increasing amount of options when it comes to getting around, from carsharing and ridesharing to light rail and biking. While there have never been more options, eGo CarShare, as a nonprofit carsharing organization, is unique in what it can offer.
One challenge to shared mobility that eGo can help tackle is the goal of equity and access for all. Being a nonprofit means that we not only run a full scale carsharing service with 50+ cars, but we also receive grants to do things like bring carsharing to areas which might not be particularly profitable. For example, eGo CarShare was awarded a Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) grant through the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG) for 2014-2015 to create “Multi-modal Toolkits” for residents in various affordable housing neighborhoods in Boulder and Denver. Partial matching funding was provided by Mile High Connects and The Denver Foundation. eGo partnered with Boulder Housing Partners (BHP), Denver HousingAuthority (DHA) and Habitat for Humanity of Metro Denver (HFHMD) to provide select households with significantly subsidized monthly transit passes, free carshare memberships with discounted usage rates, free or discounted B-cycle memberships and/or access to pool bikes, and education about the multi-modal transportation options available to them. These public-private partnerships make it possible for us to provide not just carsharing but also greater mobility options to low-income areas.
Denver has made it possible to increase the visibility of all carshare services through its progressive on-street parking policies. These regulations have allowed us (and other carsharing services) to have designated on-street parking spaces, reserved specifically for our cars, something which does not exist in all cities. Having designated spaces on-street builds awareness of carsharing and therefore increases the number of people who use carsharing, because they see how convenient it can be and how easy cars are to access. Round-trip carsharing also helps to significantly ease parking demands as studies show each round-trip carsharing car replaces 9 -13 personally owned vehicles. This is because carshare members rely on a shared car rather than have their own or are able to get rid of a second vehicle while maintaining flexibility. Thus as vehicle ownership decreases, less space is needed for parking.
Participating in shared mobility is becoming an ever more viable option for people in Denver and beyond. eGo CarShare has over 50 locations in Denver, Boulder and Longmont and we hope to eventually expand to other surroundings communities, though population density to support carsharing and the relative newness of the carsharing concept can be challenging in new areas. eGo CarShare only requires two years of driving history and a valid license (which does not have to be in-state or even from the US) to apply for membership, making it a great option for college students, people visiting from other countries or others who wan a vehicle occasionally to get around. With no annual fees and carsharing rates starting at just $4.50/hour + $0.33/mile, including gas and insurance, sharing a car with eGo can also save a lot of money! AAA estimates in its 2015 study that it costs $7,606 a year to own your own car – you can afford to regularly use a LOT of other mobility options for well under $633/month without losing your flexibility and freedom and you’ll never have to deal with the hassles of car ownership.
Round-trip carsharing is meant to complement, rather than compete with, other mobility services like transit and bikeshare, creating even more transportation options as carshare locations expand around the city and beyond. Fewer cars on the road means less congestion, less emissions, improved environmental quality and better quality of life for communities – all goals eGo works toward as a local nonprofit.
eGo CarShare Expands in Longmont
We recently expanded our service area to include two locations in Longmont: a designated space at the lot at 6th and Coffman, approved by Longmont City Council January 26th, 2016 and another at Casa de la Esperanza at 1520 South Emery Street!
The Longmont expansion is part of a grant program to give better access to transportation options for low-income residents. This pilot project is a joint effort between eGo CarShare and Boulder County to create more awareness of transportation options and to increase resident mobility. The discounted program currently runs through December 2016, with hopes that there will be enough interest to stay in Longmont for the long term. Boulder County Housing Authority (BCHA) residents and Longmont Housing Authority (LHA) residents in Longmont receive free eGo memberships and significantly discounted rates. eGo CarShare is also waiving the application fee for the first 25 members of the general public who join using promo code LongmontFree! As always with eGo’s service, gas and insurance are included in every reservation.
eGo CarShare is committed to providing an affordable transportation option to as many local residents as possible while reducing the environmental and social impacts of personal car ownership. Research has shown that after joining a roundtrip carshare service like eGo, members walk 40% more, ride public transit 34% more, bike 18% more, and reduce their Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) by over 40%. Studies also show that every roundtrip carsharing vehicle on the road replaces 9 to 13 personal vehicles, encouraging members to either sell their car or avoid purchasing a new vehicle and freeing up parking in congested areas.
“We’re thrilled to be able to expand our network of vehicles to Longmont and bring new multimodal options to residents there. We feel that carsharing can bring great benefits to the community of Longmont, particularly for underserved populations,” said eGo CarShare’s Director, Karen Worminghaus.
Access to carsharing for the greater Longmont community will integrate effectively with Boulder County’s RideFree Longmont program, which allows all of Longmont’s local buses to be free for anyone to use. The Longmont carshare locations broaden our existing system of 32 vehicles in Boulder and 20 vehicles in Denver, all of which can be accessed via our 24/7 pay-as-you-drive system.
Thank You Colorado Gives Donors!
These funds will be put to work in our 2015 Affordable Housing Transportation Toolkit program by supporting the Neighborhood Eco (NECO) Pass component. We will apply your donation to the neighborhood you specified (Red Oak Park in Boulder or Mariposa in Denver), or to the area with the greatest need if you did not specify a location preference.
Donations can still be made throughout the year via the Colorado Gives web site, and the sooner we can raise the matching funds the sooner we can renew the NECO Pass contracts for these neighborhoods so that residents do not have a lapse in coverage.
– NECO Pass/Multi-modal Toolkit recipient