Kelowna

Are you in need of a vehicle, but only part time?

Are you a two car family that could get by with one-and-a-half?

Photo: Kelly Hayes - Castanet File Photo

The Okanagan Car Shar Co-op hopes to reduce the number of vehicles on Kelowna roadways

Know others in the same situation?

The newly formed Okanagan Car Share Co-op (OCSC) may have the perfect solution.

Kelowna City Council endorsed the cooperative Monday and agreed to facilitate a $6,500 grant from the Enterprising Non-Profits organization to OCSC.

Regional Programs Manager, Jerry Dombowsky, says the funds are to be used by the cooperative to develop a business plan.

"The city is not obligated in any way other than the flow through funding mechanism and absolutely no City of Kelowna funding would be used," says Dombowsky.

Dombowsky says the concept of car sharing is simple.

"A group of people get together, they purchase and operate one or more vehicles to be shared by the group based on individual time used for that vehicle," says Dombowsky.

"Most individuals and some families don't need access to a vehicle full time, so car sharing is a way to spread out fixed costs such as the purchase price, insurance and maintenance."

He says the other advantage is a reduction in kilometres travelled.

"People who own a vehicle and put out the money for it tend to drive more then when they are in (a) car sharing operation."

Through car sharing, Dombowsky says there will be less demand on road infrastructure and reduced congestion.

"From an environmental and sustainable point of view car sharing helps reduce the greenhouse gasses we use through automobile usage."

Car sharing is endorsed through Kelowna's Official Community Plan as well as the Community Climate Action Plan.

It's not a new concept. Car Sharing is currently operational and successful in Victoria, Vancouver, Nelson and Winnipeg.

Dombowsky says the OCSC is a new organization that hopes to introduce the concept to Kelowna and eventually the rest of the Okanagan.

"I think this is something that the time has come for Kelowna," says Councillor Luke Stack.

Stack says one of the neat parts of the concept is that two car families can now become one car families.

"If you only need a second car once in a while it really could reduce the number of cars on the road. I think there are a lot of great applications and the Okanagan would be well served to have one of these programs."

Here is a pictures taken from the OCSC Facebook page.

Photo: Contributed - https://www.facebook.com/OkanaganCarShareCoop