The community kitchen in Rotherhithe has distributed hundreds of cooked meals weekly for two years to elderly residents and vulnerable locals in southeast London. However, the group's plans face major disruption by the news that they will lose cars and vans on New Year’s Day.
This organization depended on Zipcar, the app-based vehicle rental service that customers to access its cars via smartphone. The company caused shock across London when it said it would cease its UK operations from 1 January.
This means many volunteers cannot pick up supplies from the Felix Project, that collects excess produce from supermarkets, cafes and restaurants. Obvious alternatives are less convenient, more expensive, or lack the same convenient access.
“It’s going to be affected massively,” stated Vimal Pandya, the community kitchen’s founder. “My team and I are worried about the operational hurdle we will face. Many groups like ours will face difficulties.”
“Knowing the reality, everyone is concerned and thinking: ‘How will we continue?’”
The community kitchen’s drivers are among over 500,000 people in London registered as car club members, who could be left without easy use to vehicles, avoiding the burden and cost of ownership. Most of those members were likely with Zipcar, which held a dominant position in the city.
This shutdown, subject to consultation with employees, is a big blow to hopes that car sharing in cities could reduce the need for private vehicle ownership. Yet, some analysts have noted that Zipcar’s exit need not mean the demise for the concept in Britain.
Car sharing is prized by city planners and environmentalists as a way of reducing the problems linked to vehicle ownership. Most cars sit idle on the street for the vast majority of the time, occupying parking. They also require large carbon emissions to produce, and people who do not own cars tend to walk, cycle and take transit more. That helps urban areas – reducing congestion and pollution – and boosts public health through more exercise.
Zipcar was founded in 2000 before being bought by the American rental giant Avis Budget in 2013. Zipcar’s UK income were minimal compared with its parent company's overall annual revenue, and a deficit that grew to £11.7m in 2024 gave no reason to continue.
The parent company stated the closure is part of a “broader transformation across our global operations, where we are taking deliberate steps to simplify processes, enhance profitability”.
Its latest financial reports noted revenues had fallen as drivers took fewer and shorter trips. “These changes reflect the continuing effect of the economic squeeze, which continues to suppress demand for non-essential services,” it said.
Yet, several experts noted that London has particular issues that made it difficult for the company and its rivals to succeed.
“We should literally be charged one-twentieth of a private parking cost,” said Robert Schopen of Co Wheels. “We remove vehicles. We’re putting less polluting cars in their place.”
Nations in Europe offer models for London to follow. Germany enacted national shared mobility laws in 2017, providing a nationwide framework for parking, subsidies and exemptions. Now, the country has 5.4 shared cars per 10,000 people, while France has 2.1 and Belgium has 6.3. The UK trails at 0.7.
“What we see is that car sharing around the world, particularly on the continent, is growing,” commented Bharath Devanathan of Invers.
Devanathan said authorities should start to view vehicle clubs as a form of public transport, and link it with train and bus stations. He added that a potential operator was already seriously considering entering the London market: “There will be fill this gap.”
Other players can roughly be divided into two models:
One company, a US-headquartered peer-to-peer platform, is already weighing up the UK gap. Rory Brimmer, its UK managing director, said there was a “significant chance” to win more users. “There is a void that is going to need to be filled, because London still needs to move,” Brimmer said.
However, it could take a while for other players to build momentum. For now, more people may choose to buy cars, and many across London will be left without access.
For Rotherhithe community kitchen, the coming weeks will be a rush to find a solution. The logistical challenge caused by Zipcar’s exit highlights the wider implications of its departure on community groups and the prospects of car-sharing in the UK.
A tech enthusiast and gaming aficionado with over a decade of experience in digital media and content creation.
