Southwark Liberal Democrats Welcome Return of Car Clubs to Southwark

The Southwark Liberal Democrats have welcomed the return of car clubs to the borough following new partnerships between Southwark Council and operators including Hiyacar, Enterprise and Co-wheels. 

Car clubs provide residents with access to vehicles when they need them, helping to reduce private car ownership, cut congestion and improve air quality. The new schemes will see an initial 30 vehicles introduced across Southwark, from London Bridge to Dulwich. 

Earlier this year, Liberal Democrats raised concerns about the impact of Zipcar's withdrawal from London, writing to Mayor Sadiq Khan to warn that the loss of car-sharing services risked increasing car ownership, congestion and traffic levels across the capital. 

Commenting, Liberal Democrat Chair of the Environment Scrutiny Commission Cllr Graham Neale said:

“When Zipcar announced it was pulling out of London, we wrote to Sadiq Khan warning that if car-sharing services disappeared, the result would be more car ownership, more congestion and more pollution.

That's why I'm really pleased to see new operators stepping in to fill the gap in Southwark. Car clubs are one of those rare policies that work for everyone: residents save the cost of owning a car, while our streets benefit from less traffic and cleaner air.

This is a positive step for the borough and I hope we'll see these schemes continue to grow in the years ahead.”