As Tampa’s downtown work force grows, and with more residents moving into the core, there is a growing need to explore various commuting/transportation options.  One of today’s newest and growing trends in densely populated U.S. communities is a concept called:
 
  Carsharing.

  Carsharing is neither carpooling nor car rental.  Carsharing provides an alternative to car ownership for people and businesses. Vehicles are parked in reserved parking spaces throughout downtown. Members of carsharing companies can reserve and use the vehicles by the hour, with gasoline and insurance included in the rates.

  Studies have shown that carsharing can reduce car usage and parking needs and promote the use of public transit, walking and bicycling. Businesses, government agencies and universities have also begun exploring the use of carsharing as a commuter incentive to reduce the costs of owning and operating a fleet.

  The Tampa Downtown Partnership will hold a session on carsharing - “Enjoy the Benefits of Using a Car without the Costs of Owning One” - that includes lunch to create interest among downtown companies, residents, developers, city staff, transportation planners, neighborhood groups and individuals.

  The keynote speaker for this event will be David Brook, founder of the first commercial carsharing company in the United States, Flexcar (web http://www.flexcar.com ), now with more than 35,000 members in seven metropolitan areas. He will present an overview of how carsharing works, who uses it and some steps needed to make it happen in Tampa.

  This session will be March 15 from noon to 1 p.m. at the USF Downtown Center at the Tampa Port Authority building, 1101 Channelside Drive, Room 114.  There is free parking and participants are encouraged to travel the TECO Line Streetcar System to the Port Authority Station.

  RSVP by March 13 to Karen Kress at the Tampa Downtown Partnership, (813) 221-3686 or email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
 
      - From Paul Ayres, Tampa Downtown Partnership

More Car-sharing information, by Catherine S. Mitseas, for the Partnership:

  A small but growing transportation metamorphosis is under way. The movement is turning auto owners into pedestrians and taking cars off the road. It is simple to understand, elegant in its strategy, and not federally funded. It is car-sharing; a business in which individuals rent locally-parked cars for short bursts of time. Begun in Europe, the idea migrated to the U.S. about five years ago. According to companies involved in car-sharing, many customers eventually shed their automobiles, preferring to let someone else handle the hassle of owning and maintaining a vehicle.
  In car-sharing, a private company parks vehicles throughout a city for the use of registered members, who then select and reserve a car online or by phone. At the appointed hour, the individual walks to the car, unlocks the auto by pressing a keycard to the window, drives it away for the allotted time, and then returns it to its original spot. There is no paperwork, no annoying up-selling, and no complicated returns. Just ramble up to the designated car and drive away.
  The company owns, maintains, and insures the car. The driver pays only an hourly fee or a daily rate, and may choose from such zippy, fun and functional transportation as the MINI Cooper, Honda Element, Volkswagen Jetta, BMW 325i and the Toyota Tacoma pickup truck, among others.
  Karen Origlio, an MBA student at the University of Tampa, is a proponent and messenger for the service. After researching car-sharing for a graduate school project, she began exploring its potential in the Tampa market.
  Could it work here? Maybe, maybe not, is the answer. Car-sharing works best in densely populated areas with a high percentage of single-person households, a large number people who either walk or use public transportation to reach work and, in some cases, strong government involvement.
  Besides downtown residents, car-sharing attracts other users including fleet-owning businesses and government offices, and on-campus university students. In Tampa, cruise passengers could be a good market, Origlio believes.
  Tampa’s ongoing residential growth indicates the city is on its way, Origlio says, but it still needs time to mature. But it’s not too early to teach local leaders about car-sharing and, perhaps, entice a company to consider our city.
  The concept is growing rapidly around the United States. Zipcar (web http://www.zipcar.com ), of Cambridge, Mass., reports 50,000 members, and says it was the first car-sharing service in North America to attain profitability in all of its markets.
  Established in 2000, Zipcar cars can be found in seven states and 21 cities, primarily along the east coast. The company recently launched west coast operations in three cities after securing $10 million in funding.
  Seattle-based Flexcar (http://www.flexcar.com) covers 30 cities in seven major markets, and boasts a high-profile investment team. AOL founder Steve Case’s investment firm, Revolution, recently acquired a controlling interest in Flexcar. Lee Iacocca is both senior adviser and an investor/director of Flexcar.
  Additionally, Flexcar, which began in 1999, provides a franchise-like network service called “I Go,” in which the company arranges the back-office operations for entrepreneurs interested in opening new locations. Flexcar spokesperson John Williams says the company looks for dense urban areas with three primary criteria: costly and/or scarce parking, good public transportation, and a city structure with a strong, pedestrian-oriented grid.
  Both companies cite Miami as their first prospective Florida location. Car-sharing, proponents say, decreases congestion, reduces car usage, and promotes alternative transportation.
  It’s green. It’s good. And maybe, someday, it will come to Tampa.