Car share the way to go

The costs linked to owning a car can drive you nuts, writes Tim McIntyre

CAPITAL cities are the least cost effective places to run a car. The stop-start traffic burns your fuel in record time, the chances of minor accidents rise with every extra car on the packed roads and parking costs a packet. Then there are maintenance costs.

Finder research found a threeyear-old car that cost $30,000 to purchase would run up costs of $10,600 a year when loan payments, fuel, insurance, registration and servicing are factored in. That’s hard to take if your car spends most of its time in the garage. If you use public transport for work and don’t travel often for leisure, why not sell your car and try to live for a year without one?

I spoke to friends recently who did so and claimed to save $7000 in one year, using public transport and car sharing services.

Members of a car sharing service such as Go Get pay a fee to cover fuel, maintenance, insurance and cleaning and pick up cars from designated city areas.

But the concept is evolving and now peer to peer car lending services such as Car Next Door and Drive My Car, allow users to pay an hourly rate to rent a car from someone nearby. This might mean paying as little as $5 an hour to borrow a car from someone in your street to run errands.

Monash University’s Professor George Rose says peer to peer lending will be a big winner for communities.

“People can share resources without spending too much,” he said, adding traffic would benefit from the option. “Research show one share vehicle replaces eight to 10 private vehicles on the road.

“There would be less take up in suburban areas, but peer to peer may mean a family is able to do away with a second car which can save serious money.”

If you are unsure, next time you sell your car just trial it for a few months, keep an expense diary and see if the numbers stack up.