Projects
Topics
Publications
Locations
Projects > Transport focus > Car clubs
Belfast car club
Advice and liaison was provided to Carvill Group, who provided pump-prime finance for the establishment of Belfast's first car club. The operation was taken up by Wizzgo. The project involved assessing neighbourhoods with good market potential, finding suitable car locations, and liaison with Carplus and assisting with the procurement process.
A seminar was organised in Belfast with interested parties invited. Car Club operators were invited to give presentations, along with Philip Igoe of the car club charity Carplus.
Credit must be given to Carvill Group (housing developers), who wanted to offer shared cars in their planned new developments in Belfast. Lack of interest and action by the authorities to promote car clubs in the city prompted Carvill Group to fund the establishment of a scheme from company resources. Given this unusual and worthy private sector contribution to sustainable transport, the ultimate failure of the scheme was very disappointing. Perhaps more disappointing was the lack of interest shown by the city and Northern Ireland authorities and their unwillingness to rescue and build on the Carvill initiative.
Outcome
The scheme was established and ran for 18 months, but failed due to lack of take-up. The promotion and management effort appeared to be inadequate to meet the challenges of a difficult and perhaps reluctant market. Wizzgo had a strong ethical message, but ultimately a weak financial model and was subsequently taken over by City Car Club
| Location | Belfast Northern Ireland |
|---|---|
| Date(s) | 2007-2008 |
| Client(s) | Carvill Group |
| Team(s) | Tim Pharoah with Carvill Group |
