Tri-City residents have more ways to get around without having to own a car thanks to the opening of the Evergreen Extension.
The car-sharing coop Modo has doubled its fleet to 16 cars along the Evergreen Extension route in the Tri-Cities in recent weeks and American-owned Zipcar has two cars stationed in Town Centre, with more planned.
Modo marketing director Selena McLachlan said with Evergreen's opening today, people have more options for getting around and, if they can get rid of a car, can book a Modo vehicle for specific trips, such as shopping our visiting.
"Our strategy has always been to expand along public transit and important transit lines because when there is a strong, viable transit option, then people will start to change their driving behaviours," she told The Tri-City News.
Zipcar is also providing car sharing opportunities in the Tri-Cities, with cars located near Glen Drive and Pacific Street within walking distance of the Lincoln and Lafarge Lake-Douglas stations.
The region's third car sharing service, Evo, which is owned by the BC Automobile Association, is not yet ready to make a move into the Tri-Cities but is keeping an eye on the region, says Tai Silvey, director of car share.
The company, which has 1,000 cars in Vancouver and a few hubs at some post-secondary institutions, needs to have a lot of users in an area because the cars can be dropped off and picked up anywhere, not at specific locations, as with Modo and Zipcar.
"The idea [of one-way car sharing] is there are no restrictions where you pick up or drop off — it's on demand and ultra convenient," Silvey said, but "you need enough people in a geographic area so those cars can constantly move around."
Still the Tri-Cities may be a good market for Evo in the future because higher density follows rapid transit.
