Share Now, the German company that manages the car rental company until recently known as Car2Go, has announced it will exit the North American market effective February 29, 2020. It operates popular car rental services in Washington, D.C., as well as Montreal, New York, Seattle and Vancouver.
The decision was based on two factors, the company said a press release: “The first being the volatile state of the global mobility landscape, and the second being the rising infrastructure complexities facing North American transportation today and the associated costs needed to sustain operations here.”
The company will also shut down its operations in three European locations—Florence, London and Brussels—due to low adoption rates.
“We are saddened by this decision and cannot express enough our appreciation for every employee, customer, business partner and city stakeholder who has supported us throughout the years in North America,” the company said.
Car2Go brought its tiny two-seat Smart cars to the District in 2012, challenging Zipcar in the on-demand, car-sharing space. The company expanded to Arlington in 2015 and added Mercedes-Benz sedans and small SUVs in 2017, with plans to phase the Smart cars out. It officially rebranded as Share Now in November.
There are currently 150,694 users in D.C., according to a company official who isn’t authorized to speak on the record.
For those mourning the loss, Zipcar is still around and Free2Move launched in D.C. last year. The latter’s app is also designed to show not only its own vehicles, but the competition (or what remains of it).
http://dcist.com/story/19/12/18/car2go-is-closing-operations-in-d-c/
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