February 3, 2016

Zipcar Officially Launches in Central Florida

ORLANDO, Fla., Feb. 3, 2016 – Zipcar, the world’s leading car sharing network, today announced new partnerships in central Florida with the cities of Orlando and Winter Park to bring its “wheels when you want them” membership service to the area. Residents, businesses, visitors and students now have access to Zipcar’s affordable, convenient and sustainable transportation option. 

The Florida Department of Transportation’s reThink program, a service that seeks to reduce congestion, improve air quality, conserve natural resources and save commuters money, was an initial catalyst for this launch, reaching out to Zipcar in March 2015 about the opportunity to partner with the cities of Orlando and Winter Park and convening early discussions.

A total of twelve Zipcars—six located in on-street parking spots and garages in downtown Orlando, four at hotels in walking distance to Disney Springs and two in a surface lot at the Winter Park SunRail Station—are available for reservation by the hour or by the day in easily accessible locations such as Lake Eola Park, Orlando City Hall and the Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista, an official Walt Disney World® hotel. Vehicles are parked in designated spots for convenient pick-up and drop-off and can be reserved in seconds on Zipcar’s mobile app, online or over the phone.

“As Mayor, keeping Orlando moving continues to be one of my top priorities, ensuring that we provide safe, multimodal forms of transportation and offer everyone who lives, works and plays in our city options for getting around,” said Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer. “Zipcar helps us to further this initiative, enhancing our transportation options and further connecting our community to opportunity and meeting their daily transportation needs.”

The Orlando and Winter Park fleets feature a variety of makes and models, including a Dodge Caravan named “Minnie,” for getting the family to and from a local theme park, a BMW X1 named “The Mayor” for a night out at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts and a Ford Focus Hatchback named “Beauty” for a weekend getaway to Cocoa Beach. Each reservation includes gas, insurance and 180 miles of driving per day, making it a great option for those looking for ways to save money on the high cost of car ownership. Membership information is available at www.zipcar.com/orlando. Join in a matter of minutes on Zipcar’s mobile app.

“Zipcar couldn’t be more excited to expand our “wheels when you want them” service to central Florida,” said Smokshane West, Florida market manager of Zipcar. “In addition to walking, biking, SunRail, LYMMO and LYNX, visitors and residents now have access to a car when they need one. Members can hop off the LYNX and into a Zipcar or surprise their kids with Zipcar “Minnie” to visit an area theme park.”

Zipcar’s partnerships with Orlando and Winter Park build on high demand for vehicles at the Orlando International Airport, the University of Central Florida and Rollins College. With the addition of Zipcars in downtown Orlando, the Winter Park SunRail and Disney Springs, members have access to 29 vehicles in central Florida. Zipcar members can reserve and drive vehicles throughout central Florida or in any one of the hundreds of cities and towns around the world where Zipcar operates as well as at over 50 airports.

“We are pleased to offer Zipcar services at our Winter Park train station, which is located in our downtown business district,” said Winter Park Mayor Steve Leary. “The area around the train station has evolved into a central transportation hub with various convenient options of travel, including SunRail, Amtrak, LYNX, biking, walking and now car sharing. We are thrilled that Zipcar is furthering the city’s efforts to offer easy ways to travel in and around Winter Park.”

Local businesses can benefit from Zipcar’s presence through the Zipcar for Business (Z4B) program that offers discounted driving rates Monday through Friday. The Z4B program helps businesses save money, meet environmental sustainability goals and reduce parking requirements by providing employees with access to Zipcar for business needs and other uses.

About Zipcar

Zipcar, the world’s leading car sharing network, has operations in urban areas and college campuses throughout Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States. Zipcar offers more than 50 makes and models of self-service vehicles by the hour or day to residents and businesses looking for smart, simple and convenient solutions to their urban and campus transportation needs. Zipcar is a subsidiary of Avis Budget Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: CAR), a global leader in vehicle rental services. More information is available at www.zipcar.com. 

About City of Orlando

Orlando is an internationally known City drawing over 62 million visitors each year. In addition to world-class attractions, the region features a vibrant Downtown with premier amenities anchored with growing residential, retail and commercial development. Orlando continues to receive accolades in the areas of employment growth, diversity, art and more and the City remains focused on continuing to meet its mission of enhancing the quality of life and public services for the community. Connect with Orlando on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Flickr, and Instagram.

About City of Winter Park

Winter Park is an internationally recognized International City/County Management Association Excellence Award winner with accredited fire-rescue, police and parks & recreation agencies. For more information regarding the City of Winter Park, please visit the City’s official website at cityofwinterpark.org. Like, follow and watch Winter Park on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Vimeo, and YouTube.

About reThink

reThink is Central Florida’s #1 resource for commuter options. A service of the Florida Department of Transportation, reThink aims to decrease traffic congestion, improve air quality, conserve natural resources, and save commuters money. To achieve these goals, reThink promotes transportation options, including carpooling, riding transit, biking or walking to work, and telecommuting. For more information, please visit www.reThinkYourCommute.com or call 1-866-610-RIDE (7433).

 

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Media Contact:

Katelyn Chesley

Public Relations Specialist, Zipcar

617-678-7206

[email protected]