Madrid Plugs Into Shared Electric-Vehicles for Clean Air

June 17th, 2019 | by Karina Ingerslev, Senior Account Director, EMEA | Posted in: Insight on Things

Ridecell powers ZITY Carsharing

In its fight against greenhouse gases, Madrid is enlisting an army of shared electric-vehicles for help.

Municipalities around the world are hard at work to curb air pollution and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Joining a growing list of cities trying to turn a green leaf, Madrid is putting shared, electric-vehicle fleets at the heart of the battle.

With each shared vehicle expected to replace 9 to 12 privately owned cars in dense urban areas, the incentives are high to develop the use of electric shared mobility in congested cities.

All Aboard

Ridecell supports the rise of companies that are looking to offer more sustainable shared mobility services, like car-sharing service, ZITY.

In Madrid, Ridecell worked with French automaker, Renault, and Ferrovial Servicio, a Spanish infrastructure operator to launch ZITY, an on-demand car-sharing service made up of 650 all-electric Renault Zoe cars powered by Ridecell.

ZITY’s launch followed the city’s Zero Emission Zone that limited access to central Madrid to residents and all-electric vehicles only. Gas emissions are expected to be reduced by 40 percent as a result.

With its 300-kilometer range, Renault’s Zoe allows ZITY to operate across central Madrid’s 96 km2 area, one of the largest active car-sharing zone of any cities and the first to come to Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas airport. For added flexibility, a bonus “Standby” option allows ZITY users to park their car for a limited time outside of the designated service area.

The car-sharing service was an instant hit with Madrileños rating the service on average 4 to 5 stars. Within a year, ZITY gained almost 200, 000 users, covered more than 9.5 million kilometers and averaged 8 rentals per car, per day.

Green Madrid

Making 1.100 acres of prime land in the center of Madrid off-limits to gasoline cars –except for public transportation, business deliveries, and local residents– was a bold move that paid off.

Madrid, a city that regularly ranked as one of the most polluted European capitals, is on track to meet the expectations on air quality of the European Environment Agency for 2020. A study showed that CO2 emission dropped by 14,2 percent while nitrogen oxide, another polluting gas produced by cars, fell off 38 percent within a month of the ban.

By introducing Plan A, a host of 30 incentives and restrictive measures for cleaner air, Madrid reinvented itself, moving from gray to green.

Following Madrid’s lead, other cities need to implement smart policies that promote the use of shared mobility and accelerate the shift from privately owned vehicles.

Author: Karina Ingerslev, Senior Account Director, EMEA, Ridecell