WOLFSBURG: Volkswagen has announced a vehicle-on-demand fleet — consisting entirely of electric cars — set to kick off in Germany in 2019 and expanding to major cities in Europe, North America and Asia by as soon as 2020.
The German automobile manufacturer is “convinced that the car sharing market still has potential” and is planning a continuously expanding platform for customers that goes by the name of WE/We, which will facilitate "zero-emission, sustainable mobility,” explained Jürgen Stackmann, VW Brand Board Member for Sales, in an announcement, also noting that its “an intelligent way to relieve the strain on urban areas.”
It's a vision that could provide young adults in big cities a way to travel short or long distances in environmentally friendly vehicles at an affordable price. Potential benefits of car sharing could include reducing pollution and traffic and saving riders money on fuel, insurance and the price of the car itself.
VW's announcement goes on to suggest that its “recently presented progressive e-mobile solutions,” in the form of two electric scooters — ID Cityskater and the ID Streetmate — could also play a part in the brand's vision of “vehicle-on-demand services” as "micro-mobility solutions.” The brand didn't mention which electric vehicles they have envisioned for the sharing service, however an image of an I.D. study is used to illustrate their announcement.
The aforementioned WE platform provides a number of services, including apps like We Park, We Deliver, Car Net and more that would allow car owners to use their cars as a pick-up point for deliveries, pay parking meters, or simply check fuel levels and other stats. This platform, along with the vehicle-on-demand services is also designed to complement mobility solutions of the Volkswagen Group's MOIA brand, which focuses primarily on ride hailing and pooling services.
VW is not the only one with its sights set on addressing commuters' needs; both PSA and Renault have said they will soon launch electric car-sharing services in Paris. Furthermore, premium brands, BMW and Mercedes have also outlined for new types of mobility solutions order to scale up in the increasingly popular sector, while earlier this week Volvo announced its own M mobility brand.
