Toronto City Council Approves Designated Parking Spots for Car Sharing Throughout the Downtown Core

TORONTO, October 1 2009 — Toronto's City Council announced last night the approval of 20 new, dedicated car-share parking spaces. Zipcar, the world's largest car-sharing service, will participate in the pilot program, which will offer convenient access to car-share vehicles at core city locations including:

• Emily Street
• Jordan Street
• Ed Mirvish Way
• Gould Street
• Mutual Street

"We're thrilled with the leadership the City of Toronto is demonstrating by recognizing the importance of car sharing," explains Michael Lende, General Manager for Zipcar Toronto. "With hundreds of new members joining each month, and each Zipcar replacing 15 to 20 personally owned vehicles, car sharing will continue to positively impact the future of Toronto's transportation mix with recognizable environmental and economic rewards."

Car sharing has proven to benefit cities and their residents, as members are more likely to bike, walk and take public transit, helping manage traffic congestion on city streets. Car sharing also saves consumers money — on average, $400 to $700 per month. In addition, fewer cars on the road translate into less carbon emissions in the environment. The current Zipcar Toronto member base alone has the potential to reduce annual CO2 emissions by more than 19 million pounds.

Council's decision to dedicate city-street parking for car sharing is timed with incredible membership growth for Zipcar in Toronto. Zipcar's Toronto membership is up nearly 40% since last year.

"In order for car sharing to continue to grow, Torontonians must have 24-hour, 7 days per week, self-service access to vehicles," added Lende. "Today, one million Torontonians are within a ten-minute walk of a Zipcar. On-street parking provides even more residents with convenient access to Zipcars."

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. More information is available at www.Zipcar.com or www.Zipcar.ca.

For further information: Nancy Scott Lyon of Zipcar, +1-617-336-4332, [email protected]; or Erin Stewart of Harbinger, +1-416-960-5100 ext. 265, [email protected] Web Site: http://www.zipcar.com

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