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The volunteer food project in Rotherhithe has been delivering hundreds of prepared dishes each week for two years to elderly residents and needy locals in southeast London. However, the group's plans face major disruption by the announcement that they will lose cars and vans on New Year’s Day.

The group depended on Zipcar, the car-sharing company that customers to access its cars from the street. It sent shockwaves through the capital when it declared it would shut down its UK operations from 1 January.

It will mean many helpers will be unable to pick up supplies from a major food charity, that collects excess produce from supermarkets, cafes and restaurants. Obvious alternatives are less convenient, costlier, or do not offer the same convenient access.

“It’s going to be affected massively,” stated Vimal Pandya, the project's founder. “Personally me and my team are worried about the logistical challenge we will face. Many groups like ours are going to struggle.”

“Knowing the reality, everyone is concerned and thinking: ‘How will we continue?’”

A Major Blow for City Vehicle Clubs

These volunteers are among more than half a million people in London registered as car club members, now potentially left without easy use to vehicles, without the hassle and cost of ownership. The vast majority of those people were probably with Zipcar, which had a near-monopoly position in the city.

The planned closure, subject to consultation with employees, is a serious setback to the vision that vehicle clubs in cities could reduce the need for owning a car. Yet, some experts also suggested that Zipcar’s departure need not spell the end for the concept in Britain.

The Promise of Car Sharing

Shared vehicle use is prized by many urbanists and environmentalists as a way of mitigating the problems associated with vehicle ownership. Typically, vehicles sit as two-tonne dead weights on the street for the vast majority of the time, using up space. They also require large CO2 output to produce, and people who do not own cars tend to use active travel and take public transport more. That benefits cities – easing congestion and pollution – and improves public health through increased activity.

Understanding the Decline

The company started in 2000 before being bought by the American rental giant Avis Budget in 2013. Zipcar’s UK revenues were minimal compared with its owner's total earnings, and a deficit that grew to £11.7m in 2024 gave little incentive to continue.

The parent company stated the closure is part of a “wider restructuring across our international business, where we are taking targeted actions to simplify processes, enhance profitability”.

Its latest financial reports noted revenues had fallen as drivers took less frequent, shorter trips. “This trend reflect the ongoing impact of the economic squeeze, which continues to suppress demand for non-essential services,” it said.

London's Unique Hurdles

However, industry observers noted that London has particular issues that made it difficult for the sector to succeed.

• Patchwork Policies: Across 33 boroughs, car-club operators face a patchwork of varying processes and costs that made it harder.
• New Costs: The closure coincides with electric cars becoming liable for London’s congestion charge, adding extra expenses.
• Unequal Parking Fees: Residents in some boroughs pay as little as £63 for a annual electric car parking permit. A similar shared vehicle would pay over £1,100 per year, creating a major disincentive.

“We should literally be charged one-twentieth of a resident’s permit,” argued Robert Schopen of Co Wheels. “We’re taking cars off the street. We’re putting less polluting cars in their place.”

A European Example

Nations in Europe offer examples for London to follow. Germany enacted national car-sharing legislation in 2017, providing a unified system for parking, subsidies and exemptions. Now, the country has 5.4 shared cars per 10,000 people, while France has 2.1 and Belgium has 6.3. The UK lags behind at 0.7.

“What we see is that car sharing around the world, particularly on the continent, is expanding,” commented Bharath Devanathan of Invers.

He suggested authorities should start to view vehicle clubs as a form of mass transit, and link it with train and bus stations. He added that a potential operator was looking at entering the London market: “Operators will fill this gap.”

What Comes Next?

The company’s competitors can be split into two camps:

1. Fleet Operators: Which own or lease their own cars. Examples Denmark’s GreenMobility, France’s Free2Move, and Germany’s Miles Mobility.
2. Peer-to-Peer Services: Which allow users to hire out their own vehicles via an app – a kind of Airbnb for cars. Players include Britain’s Hiyacar and the US’s Getaround and Turo.

Turo, a US-headquartered peer-to-peer platform, is assessing the UK gap. Rory Brimmer, its UK managing director, said there was a “significant chance” to win more users. “A space exists that is going to need to be filled, because London still needs to move,” Brimmer said.

Yet, it could take some time for other players to build momentum. For now, more people may feel forced to buy cars, and many across London will be without a convenient option.

For Rotherhithe community kitchen, the coming weeks will be a rush to find a way. The delivery problem caused by Zipcar’s exit underscores the wider implications of its departure on community groups and the prospects of shared mobility in the UK.