For a 12€ monthly fee, those 58% of Parisians who do not own a car will be able to use one of the 3,000 Bolloré Bluecars for short journeys around the city, starting in fall 2011. The self-service car scheme, named Autolib, is based on the famous Vélib cycle-sharing system that Paris developed in 2007 and other international cities are now adopting and adapting, or simply put, copying.The electric, french-made four-seat Bluecar comes with its own GPS and is able to travel for 250 km (155 miles) between charges and has an estimated to speed of 130 kph (80 mph). Charging will take 4 hours at any of the 3,000 self-service plug-in stations being built across the city and its suburbs.
Drivers will pay 5€ for the first half an hour of use, 4€ for the next and 6€ for each subsequent 30-minute slot, to encourage short time trips. The prices will make the Bluecar an interesting alternative to Parisian taxis.
The mayor of Paris Bertrand Delanoe expects the plan to attract between 160,000 and 200,000 subscribers.
Source: The Guardian
