Florida Revs Up Zipcar Campus Car-Share Program

New, sporty and green vehicles add style and enhance the University's sustainable transportation mix

GAINESVILLE, Fla., Sept. 3 -- The University of Florida is revving up its Zipcar car sharing fleet with new and sporty vehicles, including the popular Scion Xb, Toyota Matrix and Honda Civic Hybrid, as it expands the program beyond the initial focus on faculty to include students and staff.

Florida is also increasing the total number of cars on campus as it aims to reduce demand for parking and associated congestion while offering students a convenient, economical and environmentally friendly alternative to owning a car.

Vehicles in the fleet are available for use 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The cars are now located in four self-service reserved locations -- near the Chemistry Lab building, the Health Science Center, along Inner Road and at the Reitz Student Union -- and are available to all staff and students aged 18 and over. Gas, maintenance, insurance, reserved parking and roadside assistance are included within the low hourly and daily rates.

"We've seen the benefits of car sharing for our faculty and staff members who have been able to increase use of public transit and ridesharing to get to campus," said Anna Prizzia, Director, University of Florida Office of Sustainability. "The new vehicles, combined with Zipcar's student-friendly technology and brand, will help us expand the benefits of car sharing across campus."

Students, faculty and staff can join Zipcar for $35 and will receive a $35 driving credit for the first month of their membership. Zipcar members can drive for as little as $8 per hour or $66 per day on weekdays and $9 per hour or $72 per day on weekends. All members 21 and over will have access to Zipcar's network of more than 6,500 vehicles throughout the UK and North America.

Zipcar provides a service that appeals to both the freedom-loving nature of college students who want to experience the world around them and the practical concerns of administrators tasked with running a university.

For students, Zipcar offers the freedom of car ownership without the associated cost and hassle of owning a car. Like buying music by the song, today's students immediately see the benefit of paying for a car by the hour. They see Zipcar, which consistently is ranked alongside other leading brands like Apple, Google and Twitter, as a brand that understands them.

For universities, Zipcar offers a practical and proven solution to managing demand for parking, reducing congestion and emissions and adding a lifestyle-oriented service to campus. Studies have shown the cost of a single parking spot ranges from $4,000 to $120,000 per spot, depending on whether it's an outdoor surface lot or underground garage. Since each Zipcar replaces 15 to 20 personally owned vehicles, a university could reduce the need for 30 to 40 parking spots costing up to $1.1 million by just putting two Zipcars on campus.

"Zipcar pioneered the campus car-sharing program and we continue to innovate the category," said Matthew Malloy, Vice President of Global University Operations for Zipcar. "Whether it's robust reporting and systems management features for administrators, or WAP and iPhone reservations for students, Zipcar is the proven choice for campuses across the country."

More information on the Zipcar program, including the membership application, is available online at: www.zipcar.com/ufl.

Zipcar, which has been offering campus car sharing since 2002, now has programs at more than 120 colleges and universities across the country. Among the dozens of colleges that have partnered with Zipcar to reduce traffic, noise and parking demands are MIT, Columbia, Georgetown, American University, Harvard University, University of Minnesota, University of Toronto, University of North Carolina, The University of Chicago, UCLA and Amherst.

More information about Zipcar's university programs is available at www.zipcar.com/universities

About Zipcar

Zipcar is the world's leading car-sharing service with 325,000 members and 6,500 vehicles in urban areas and college campuses throughout 28 North American states and provinces as well as in London, England. As a leader in urban transportation, Zipcar offers more than 30 makes and models of self-service vehicles by the hour or day to savvy city residents and businesses looking for an alternative to the high costs and hassles of owning a car in the city. More information is available at zipcar.com.

About University of Florida

The University of Florida is one of the nation's largest public universities. A member of the Association of American Universities, UF receives more than $550 million annually in sponsored research funding. Through its research and other activities, UF contributes more than $6 billion a year to Florida's economy and is responsible for generating more than 77,000 jobs statewide. www.ufl.edu. University of Florida Research; Working for Florida.