I lived in Berkeley andI had no problems, and I believe that San Francisco Bay Area has the best public transportation in the country. But still, if we wanted to go somewhere off the basic routes we needed to rent a car.
Even the large cities in the US are spread out -- cities like Los Angeles and Phoenix are relatively recent, they were built around cars, and therefore they are not friendly to public transportation.
Self-driving cars can solve a lot of these problems.
Very good point, Mashka. No, the US infrastructure on public transportation is spotty. Particulary here in California, where everyone travels independently for everything, and public transportation has been limited.
What does seem to be changing are the development of centralized centers that increasingly consolidate living, work, entertainment, etc., through developments and urban planning. It may take numerous developments to confirm the demand and advance the public transportation system that makes that feasible.
We clearly are not like Europe and have a long way to go for effective public transportation.
as America becomes increasingly urban, there's much less need for households to own a car, or a second car
Does urbanisation also mean a better public transportation system? As far as I know- there are not so many large cities in the States- in small towns, a car is still the only way to get somewhere- anywhere, isn't that? Or this situation has already changed and people need less cars anywhere in the USA?
For this merger to work, it really needs to be what I've sometimes seen referred to as a "reverse acquisition." Zipcar needs to transform Avis's business processes from the inside.
It sounds as if Avis at least recognizes the value in Zipcar, Alison. I like Mitch's point that their success has as much to do with the new business model, and use of technology, as their vehicles.
This truly will be fascinating to watch. If Avis puts the right combinations together, they will create a truly convenient process that will cause people to rely more on the service, creating a viable alternative to owning a car/per person.
Maybe an additional bonus can be the upgraded service models for all rental cars!
We tried Zipcar on a vacation in 2008 or so. It was a fantastic experience -- no paperwork, just get in the car and go is if you owned it. And they had a fun selection of cars too; we got to drive a Prius and Cooper Mini.
I haven't used Zipcar, but I have used Avis--and I hope the car-rental company takes a lesson from Zipcar, rather than the other way around. It's so frustrating today that companies cling to their reams of paperwork, despite having so much information about their customers already at their fingertips and deep within their databases. By leveraging the best of Zipcar, Avis would open itself to a younger group of car rental customers, naturally becoming the de facto car-rental choice for Zipcar customers who need a rental car. But if they mess-up Zipcar, they will alienate that entire customer population.
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