And off course...........after all the above parts will be milled and glued together.......and with the wheels in their respective place...the car should look very close to what we see below -

Keep looking for more....

La cosa empezó con las aerolíneas de bajo coste, después, el Bicing, últimamente también publicidad TV con TVLowCost. Ahora le ha llegado el turno al «carsharing», la versión «low-cost» de los automóviles. Este nuevo sistema de movilidad es, ante todo, una buena alternativa de desplazamiento: sostenible, barato y, de algún modo, más coherente. De hecho, en la filosofía del «carsharing» se defiende la combinación del transporte público con este servicio. Así pues, esta nueva opción resulta más razonable -tanto en lo medioambiental como en lo económico- que desplazarse únicamente con coche privado si no se realizan habitualmente trayectos de larga distancia.

Cómo funciona

En la línea del consumo rápido, eficaz y ahorrativo, el funcionamiento del «carsharing» podría resumirse así: reservar por teléfono o internet en cualquier momento del día, especificar el tiempo que se utilizará el coche escogido y acudir al aparcamiento deseado. En cuanto al precio, éste varía en función del modelo escogido, pero en el caso de un utilitario se pagan 2.90 euros a la hora y 0.30 céntimos por cada kilómetro; 0.20 a partir de 101 km. El cómo acudir y volver del aparcamiento es problema de cada uno. De hecho, el «carsharing» podría considerarse como un transporte público más. A día de hoy, Avancar -cuya titularidad es en parte pública- es la única empresa dedicada a este servicio y su número de clientes ha superado este año los 2.000, lo que supone un 48% más desde finales de 2007.

Aunque resulte menos cómodo que disponer de coche propio, el «carsharing» ahorra disgustos como el de pagar la gasolina ya que esta va incluida en las distintas tarifas, o tener que ocuparse del seguro del vehículo.

El coche debe devolverse en el mismo aparcamiento donde se ha recogido. Para quien pueda hacer uso de este servicio con comodidad, y según «Catalunya Carsharing», esta forma de desplazamiento consume un 55% menos de combustible al año. Además, resulta más rentable si se realizan menos de 15.000 km anuales. Barato y ecológico.

En este vídeo se explica cómo funciona

La Diputación de Granada, a través de la Agencia Provincial de la Energía, pretende implantar en los próximos meses el 'carsharing', una forma de desplazarse en automóvil sin necesidad de ser el propietario ni hacerse cargo de los costes de la compra, las reparaciones, el seguro, los impuestos o la plaza de aparcamiento.

El funcionamiento es sencillo: se pone una flota de vehículos al servicio de los ciudadanos. La gestión la lleva a cabo una empresa, que asigna según la demanda y mantiene los vehículos en buen estado. Para poner en marcha el servicio, es necesario conocer las principales rutas que siguen los vehículos privados.

Video: Carsharing Avancar

Desde esta humilde bitácora, les deseamos mucha suerte en el proyecto. Esperamos poder contaros buenas noticias en breve.

Más links:

• Noticia en rtve.es
• Compartir coche en Loquo
• BusVao, comparte coche y ahorra dinero. En toda España.
• Compartir.org

Public Transport

Integrating Car Sharing into MYKI

Plan to make Melbourne a car free city

Competition in car sharing

Expansion of Flexicar

Branding

Maintenance of flexicars

Academic and Industrial interests

Governement support

Foto: http://www.mobilityweek.eu

Con motivo de esta semana tan especial, se realizan multitud de actividades en las más de 300 ciudades españolas que participan. A continuación, los enlaces a las que nos han parecido más interesantes.

• Conoce el carsharing, el bicing y el carril VAO, en canalsolidario.org
• Pierre Laconte habla sobre la movilidad urbana en Europa
• La Semana Europea de la Movilidad en Salamanca, EuropaPress
• "Aire limpio para todos", en Extremadura al día
• Semana Europea de la Movilidad en 20 Minutos

Y tú, ya has participado en alguna actividad de la Semana Europea de la Movilidad? Cuéntanos!

La cosa empezó con las aerolíneas de bajo coste, después, el Bicing, últimamente también publicidad TV con TVLowCost. Ahora le ha llegado el turno al «carsharing», la versión «low-cost» de los automóviles. Este nuevo sistema de movilidad es, ante todo, una buena alternativa de desplazamiento: sostenible, barato y, de algún modo, más coherente. De hecho, en la filosofía del «carsharing» se defiende la combinación del transporte público con este servicio. Así pues, esta nueva opción resulta más razonable -tanto en lo medioambiental como en lo económico- que desplazarse únicamente con coche privado si no se realizan habitualmente trayectos de larga distancia.

Cómo funciona

En la línea del consumo rápido, eficaz y ahorrativo, el funcionamiento del «carsharing» podría resumirse así: reservar por teléfono o internet en cualquier momento del día, especificar el tiempo que se utilizará el coche escogido y acudir al aparcamiento deseado. En cuanto al precio, éste varía en función del modelo escogido, pero en el caso de un utilitario se pagan 2.90 euros a la hora y 0.30 céntimos por cada kilómetro; 0.20 a partir de 101 km. El cómo acudir y volver del aparcamiento es problema de cada uno. De hecho, el «carsharing» podría considerarse como un transporte público más. A día de hoy, Avancar -cuya titularidad es en parte pública- es la única empresa dedicada a este servicio y su número de clientes ha superado este año los 2.000, lo que supone un 48% más desde finales de 2007.

Aunque resulte menos cómodo que disponer de coche propio, el «carsharing» ahorra disgustos como el de pagar la gasolina ya que esta va incluida en las distintas tarifas, o tener que ocuparse del seguro del vehículo.

El coche debe devolverse en el mismo aparcamiento donde se ha recogido. Para quien pueda hacer uso de este servicio con comodidad, y según «Catalunya Carsharing», esta forma de desplazamiento consume un 55% menos de combustible al año. Además, resulta más rentable si se realizan menos de 15.000 km anuales. Barato y ecológico.

En este vídeo se explica cómo funciona.

Imagine an urban future where no cars are ever parked blocking the curb, but instead are ‘parked’ by being perched atop large pole where they would act as streetlamps at night. Is this a brilliant idea, or what? We’re big fans of designer Ross Lovegrove, and were blown away when we discovered his new project. It isn’t just the solar power roof or the smart design that got our attention, but rather the sheer imagination of using parked vehicles to provide illumination to the city at night.

Lovegrove’s idea calls for a four passenger vehicle, which is basically a large transparent bubble in which the four passengers sit in a circular fashion. There is no driver, as the vehicles are controlled by satellite and GPS navigation. As for fuel, the vehicles are powered by solar panels installed in the roof, and one presumes, four independent electric motors, one on each wheel. The brilliant part, or the one which definitely caught our eye (as if the sci-fi inspired bubble cars weren’t enough) was his proposal to stick each vehicle at night on top of a pole in order to both save space at the ground level, and to illuminate it!

Ross Lovegrove always brings an interesting and fresh outlook to his projects, and his “car on a stick” is no exception. As always, it isn’t just the brilliant design that we admire, it is the combination of imagination and sensibility that always attracts us to his projects.

The rear end of this compact MUV is made out of reinforced fabric, which can be opened out in a fold-out fashion for carrying large objects like a bike, or musical instruments, which otherwise wont fit inside the vehicle boot.

The Macrolon plastic body panels allows the user to upload the images onto the skin of the car, to convey his/her mood or current activity. The system works through a simple 3d projection technology - where an user can upload the images or even videos via direct-data-transfer through is iPod etc, onto the car's in-built computer.

Please note - Your comments and suggestions are eagerly awaited and welcomed !

CONCEPT  2 -

The above one's a two-seater based on a multi-purpose platform, breaking away from the conventional form of a vehicle of its type. The form essentially comprises of two parts - the front  cabin made out of Makrolon plastic, giving it the necessary transparency as well as structural safety - while the rear "Utility Shell" is made out of Sisal - which can be stretched out for additional cargo space. The roof houses solar panels which provide necessary charge to the electric motor housed in the front.

CONCEPT 3 -

This concept is 3 to 4 seater ,more of a mono-volume kind of vehicle, with large Macrolon Plastic panels around the surface providing excellent view of the surroundings, while a recessed portion at the back meant for loading and cargo easily. The rear is inspired of the old-age chariots-which used to carry the luggage / cargo on the lower side, which helps in utilising the bed of the vehicle - while the electric motor is placed below the front seats.

Your comments and suggestions are welcome and eagerly awaited !

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Wednesday night, as a representative of Austin CarShare, I attended the 8th annual (my first) Greater Austin Business Awards. Austin CarShare was named as a finalist in a new category they had called "Take On Traffic" (more on that later).

I was surprised to run into a bunch of my friends at the entrance to the Hilton Austin chanting, "W-M-I is not green!"  Turns out that one of the finalists in the category of environmental awards was Waste Management International.  Neighbors in NE Austin have been battling the proposed expansion of the MW landfill for years. I believe WMI is the only major waste hauler in Central Texas to not have an active diversion and recycling program. (I've got in inquiry in with them to confirm this one way or the other)

Inside, the event was, predictably, filled with well-dressed people representing Austin's business community, as well as media and community organizations and a sprinkling of elected officials.  After the schmoozing reception was over and we took our seats in the Grand Ballroom for a feast of a meal (really quite impressive for hotel food), the parade of awards and awardee videos began.

In the first category of awards, the Time Warner Innovation Awards, I was excited that local green/clean tech businesses pulled awards in two of the four divisions. Thin film solar technology upstart HelioVolt and Active Power, a company providing energy-efficient power solutions, won the medium and large-sized business awards respectively.

This year's event featured a new category called the ABC Services "Take On Traffic" Award.  Finalists in the Small/Medium category were Cambridge Systematics, Inc.; CP&Y, Inc.; and Green Mountain Energy.  Green Mountain Energy won, and I can tell you they have many innovative practices to incent their employees to not drive that others could learn from.  One thing they do is allow everyone who gets to work some way other than driving in a single-occupancy vehicle to enter their names each day for a weekly $100 drawing.

Large business finalists were Farmers Insurance, Advanced Micro Devices, and Spansion.  AMD won (ugh.  I know my friends are cringing at this one. They caught so much flack for locating over the Edward's Aquifer that they had to incorporate lots of green building and do transportation studies in an effort to mitigate the damage of placing a major employer (that drives lots of secondary development) over the aquifer. They have implemented a bunch of responsible commuter practices....and, side bar... Austin CarShare got them so interested in carsharing that they decided they wanted to have carsharing at more than just their Austin campus and started looking into national solutions.

An even bigger disappointment of the night was the Nonprofit category, where Austin CarShare was in the running with the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization (CAMPO) and the Capital Area Transportation Coalition.  The latter won the category, to the groans of my tablemates from other organizations (who mumbled something about "Road Warriors").

For the Austin Energy Environmental Awards:

Finalists in the small businesss category were: Greenling Organics, the Habitat Suites Hotel, and Office Furniture NOW. Office Furniture NOW! won for their efforts to reuse and refurbishing office furniture and keep tons of material out of landfills. Certainly it's nice to see some fresh entries into the green business category. I just wan tto acknowledge here that the other multiple award-winning finalists in this category are treasured local and national green businesses.

In the medium business category, finalists were Intertech Flooring, Balcones Recycling, and Green Mountain Energy; Balcones Recycling took the prize.

In the Large Business category, finalists were Wells Fargo, IBM, and Waste Management, with IBM taking the win.

The Nonprofit finalists were Star of Texas Fair & Rodeo???, Keep Austin Beautiful, and Goodwill Industries of Central Texas.  Our friends at Keep Austin Beautiful deservedly won the prize.

I certainly applaud the Austin Chamber for having a category for the environment and for taking on traffic.  Let's hope that as we move forward we can build awareness, share practices, and provide inspiration for ALL Austin businesses to operate in ways that care for the planet as well as the bottom line.

Se denomina Carsharing a un servicio de alquiler de vehículos a corto plazo.

El carsharing es un nuevo concepto de movilidad que consiste en una empresa u organización que gestiona una flota de vehículos y los pone a disposición de sus abonados (desde una hora hasta varios días). El carsharing promueve la utilización racional de los medios de transporte. De esta forma, los usuarios pueden utilizar un vehículo sin necesidad de ser propietarios, con la comodidad y el ahorro que ello representa. Comodidad porque, al ser la empresa quien gestiona los vehículos, los usuarios no tienen que ocuparse del mantenimiento ni de los trámites que implica la propiedad de un vehículo. Ahorro porque los clientes no tienen que soportar las cargas económicas de la tenencia: compra, revisiones, reparaciones, seguro, impuestos, aparcamiento, etc.; sino que sólo pagan por la utilización del vehículo: horas de uso y kilómetros.

El carsharing se basa en la idea de que para cada tipo de desplazamiento conviene utilizar un sistema de transporte distinto, desde un punto de vista del coste individual y social. En consecuencia, favorece la sostenibilidad, mediante un mayor aprovechamiento del transporte público y la sustitución de viajes motorizados por desplazamientos a pie o en bicicleta, y, en definitiva, reduciendo el tráfico de vehículos privados.

Link | http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Car_sharing

Check out this video

Based on a concept of reducing vehicle weight to "1/Xth" that of other vehicles in its class, the 1/X was reduced in weight to 420kg, which is about one-third that of the Prius. Fuel efficiency that is almost double that of the Prius was also targeted while maintaining an interior space comparable to the Prius.

As an FFV (Flex Fuel Vehicle) that can use bioethanol in addition to gasoline, the 1/X is based on a 500cc engine and also features a plug-in hybrid system that allows charging from an external power source.

The power unit is located beneath the rear seat for a midship, rear-wheel-drive system.

The body frame features lightweight, high-rigidity carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) to ensure superior collision safety performance while allowing narrower pillars for a wider field of vision.

The 1/X is a four passenger vehicle with an overall length of 3.9m, an overall width of 1.62m, an overall length of 1.41m, and a wheelbase of 2.6m.

• CARSHARE is self-service 24/7 - no annoying queues or paperwork
• CARSHARE cars are parked near you, rather than big depots that are hard to get to
• CARSHARE prices are easy to understand and we don’t have any hidden charges (ie insurance, registration, stamp duty, petrol)
• CARSHARE billing system automatically works out if your trip would be cheaper on the hourly rate or the daily rate, saving you money off a daily rental if you don’t need it.

CAR  RENTAL    V/S   CAR SHARING

Company:	Avis	CAR SHARING
Car type:	Small economy car	Range of cars for the same price
Location:	30 minutes by taxi or public transport	A few minutes walk
Hourly rate:	Not Available	$4.90 or $7.50 per hour
Daily rate:	$64.04	$68.00