Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti cut the ribbon on a new car sharing service aimed towards disadvantaged communities within the city. The program offers electric vehicle rentals and sharing to users in low-income communities. The first station near the corner of 7th and Bonnie Brae streets in Pico Union.
The BlueLA program is funded in part with a $1.7 million grand through a California program designed to spend cap-and-trade (carbon trading) dollars on green and zero-emissions programs.
BlueLA is a pilot program that is expected to expand to Westlake, Koreatown, Echo Park, and Downtown LA over time.
“The BlueLA EV car share program puts California’s cap and trade dollars to work to not only help meet the Paris Climate Agreement goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” said Mayor Garcetti, “and advance the EV goals in my Sustainable City pLAn, it brings new transportation options to neighborhoods that need them.”
Until the full service is available for public use later in the year, the Pico Union station will be used for community outreach, drive and ride events, and efforts to raise awareness about electric vehicles. Ultimately, the service will bring 100 electric cars and 200 chargers to self-service stations across the city, available to anyone 18 years or older with a valid driver’s license.
Aaron is an automotive journalist living in Wyoming, USA. His background includes technology, mechanics, commercial vehicles, and new vehicle evaluations. Aaron is a member of several automotive media groups and writes for many well-known publications.