China’s sharing economy has been on the rise, following the rapid expansion of car-hailing services like Didi Chuxing and bicycle-sharing companies Mobike and Ofo.
Not long after bicycles available to share became commonplace in major Chinese cities, car-sharing services have also sprung up across the country.
Many automobile companies have launched their own car-sharing service applications to take a slice of the market share. Gofun Chuxing, launched by Beijing Shouqi Group in February 2016, already has a fleet of 1,100 cars and over 100 rental spots in Beijing.
In Shanghai, the SAIC Motor Corporation has jointly launched more than 6,500 cars in the city with EVCARD, an electric-car rental company, with both aiming to expand their services to 50 cities in 2017. Foreign companies have also joined the arena, with automotive giant Daimler AG launching several different services including Car2go, Car2share and TOGO, mainly using cars under the Smart brand.
Most of the vehicles provided under the car-sharing service are electric. For municipal authorities, it is hoped that such schemes can help to relieve traffic jams and environmental pollution.
According to a Xinhua report, in cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, where car-sharing services are flourishing, local transport departments tend to be supportive towards this new travel model.
A report released by the National Information Center in 2016 shows that each car used for sharing could mean 13 fewer car purchases. Beijing Municipal Road and Bridge Group has already made plans to transform more than 40 locations under the bridges of the city’s second and third ring roads into car rental spots.
For the younger generation in China, the target consumers of car sharing services, these vehicles meet their travel needs while saving them the trouble and costs of keeping a car.
