Enterprise CarShare is closing their operation in the District, but the program is leaving vehicles at GW.
Six vehicles will stay available for CarShare on the Foggy Bottom and Mount Vernon campuses for students and faculty, Laura Bryant, an Enterprise spokeswoman, said. After the demand for car sharing in D.C. was analyzed, the company decided to scale back the program, Bryant said.
Previously, there were seven vehicles at GW locations, but Bryant said the decision to scale down at GW was based on demand and did not relate to the closure of the local CarShare program.
“Consumer demand for retail car sharing service in Washington D.C. did not meet Enterprise’s expectations,” she said in an email. “As a result, the local program was not able to establish itself as a sustainable transportation alternative for the long term, and Enterprise has recalibrated to fully focus on business-to-business and university car sharing operations.”
Through GW’s CarShare program, students and faculty become members to rent cars at reduced hourly or daily rate from reserved spaces in their neighborhoods. The application fee is waived and the first year of membership is lowered to $10 instead of $25, according to the GW program’s website. In 2015, the program teamed up with Nissan to supply GW affiliates with $5 hourly rates for some Nissan vehicles, according to a press release.
CarShare reservations were honored through July, and members will receive 15 percent off daily rates at Rent-A-Car locations for a year, she said. Enterprise refunded membership fees by July 21 and will refund credit balances on Aug. 31.
Bryant said that Enterprise’s Rent-A-Car program, a separate rental program, would still provide transportation for CarShare members who rent during business hours, and some local rental locations have extended their hours.