Eco-business / Social Venture

August 26, 2002

 

Japan's First Car Sharing Company Starts Operation

Keywords: Eco-business / Social Venture Non-manufacturing industry Transportation / Mobility University / Research institute 

Japan's first private company to promote car-sharing, "CEV Sharing," was set up, with 21 cars in 7 locations in Yokohama City, and aims to be profitable within 3 years.

Car-sharing is said to have originated in Switzerland in the late 1980s. The number of such organizations has grown to several hundred in Europe and several dozen in the United States. This is viewed as a venture business opportunity in the United States, however, what is unique to Japan is that Japanese government agencies such as the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport have been promoting car-sharing in conjunction with their efforts to expand the use of low-pollution vehicles such as electric cars.

According to an experiment conducted in a Tokyo residential area by the Foundation for Promoting Personal Mobility and Ecological Transportation, car use was reduced by half during the car-sharing test period, while the amount of bicycle riding and walking doubled. Car-sharing may provide opportunities for cost-saving for corporate customers in central Tokyo where parking costs are exorbitant.


Posted: 2002/08/26 05:22:22 PM
Japanese version

 

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