Gothenburg, Sweden – December 1, 2023: According to a new research report by IoT analyst firm Berg Insight, the number of users of carsharing services worldwide is forecasted to grow from 123.4 million people in 2022 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.9 percent to reach 269.4 million people in 2027. Berg Insight forecasts that the number of vehicles used for carsharing services will grow at a CAGR of 11.2 percent. This growth is projected to increase from 575,000 at the end of 2022 to 979,000 at the end of 2027. The carsharing fleet grew 8.7 percent worldwide in 2022 and membership grew an impressive 43.8 percent worldwide.
“The number of people using carsharing services has increased rapidly in recent years, especially in Europe and Asia-Pacific”, said Martin Cederqvist, IoT analyst at Berg Insight. Other markets that show promising signs are the South American and Middle Eastern markets. North America has struggled in recent years. However, it partly recovered in 2022, when the total fleet size and membership increased by 7.9 percent and 9.1 percent, respectively.
CarSharing Organisations (CSOs) offer members access to a fleet of shared cars 24/7 from unattended self-service locations. Bill usage by the minute/hour and distance driven, incorporating rates covering fuel, insurance, and maintenance. Today, most CSOs use station-based networks with roundtrip rental. Moreover, members must return a vehicle to the same designated station from which they accessed it in this operational model. Another model that is rapidly gaining in popularity is free-floating carsharing. Moreover, this model enables members to pick up and drop off cars anywhere within a designated area. In recent years, a number of CSOs have also experimented with hybrid models of roundtrip rentals and free floating carsharing. “Free floating carsharing has become increasingly popular. It expects to become the most common operational model in Europe in the coming years, in terms of both membership and fleet size”, said Mr. Cederqvist.
Today, a connected fleet and specialized software platforms are essential for running a carsharing business. These tools cover a range of operational activities, including management of in-vehicle equipment, fleet management, booking management, billing, and operations supervision. Dashboards and data analytics achieve this. Some CSOs are using in-house developed hardware and software solutions for their operations. However, the majority sources these kinds of products and services from specialized technology vendors. Some of the vendors offer an end-to-end solution, including both telematics equipment and software platforms. Other vendors focus on one of the areas. Leading vendors of hardware and software platforms include Invers, Convadis, Continental, Humax, Vulog, Ridecell, Optimum Automotive Group, Mobility Tech Green, OCTO Telematics, Targa Telematics and Glide.io.
Specialist carsharing companies, car rental companies, carmakers, and public transport operators offer carsharing services. Examples of leading CSOs backed by carmakers include Free2Move (owned by Stellantis), Volvo On Demand (owned by Volvo Cars), Zity (partly owned by Renault), Wible (owned by Kia) and Kinto Share (owned by Toyota). “In recent years, a few carmakers have exited the carsharing market. BMW and Mercedes-Benz left the market when they sold their joint venture Share Now to Stellantis in 2022. Similarly, Volkswagen left the market in November 2022 as the carsharing service WeShare was acquired by the German CSO Miles.
Stellantis now operates the leading carsharing operator in the car OEM segment, Free2Move. This service now incorporates Share Now”, said Mr. Cederqvist. Sixt Share (owned by Sixt), Zipcar (owned by Avis Budget Group) and e-GO! Drivalia (owned by Leasys) are examples of carsharing companies owned by car rental and leasing players. Specialist CSOs include Times Car Plus (owned by the Japanese parking lot operator Park 24), Socar in South Korea, EvCard and Liandong Cloud in China, Enjoy (owned by the Italian energy company Eni), Mobility Carsharing in Switzerland, Miles, Stadtmobil and Cambio in Germany, Citiz in France, Communauto in Canada and GoGet in Australia. “The top 30 carsharing service providers accounted for about 80 percent of the carsharing members and managed close to 64 percent of the carsharing fleet worldwide at the end of 2022”, concluded Mr. Cederqvist.
