I-GO Car Sharing

I-GO Car Sharing members reduced CO2 emissions in Chicago by 45,718 metric tons in 2009 and saved $24 million by not buying cars, gas, and insurance.

Those statistics are among the findings in a recently completed environmental impact study conducted by I-GO, a non-profit organization dedicated to reducing car ownership and harmful greenhouse gas emissions through car sharing. The results are based on annual survey research compiled from I-GO’s diverse membership, which is spread across the metropolitan Chicago area and has doubled in the past three years, attracted by dramatically lower costs and environmental benefits of car sharing versus car ownership.

As the BP oil spill proceeds unchecked in the Gulf of Mexico, wreaking environmental and economic devastation, and posing serious questions about the merits of offshore drilling and our thirst for oil at any price, consumers can help offset our dependence on fossil fuels by turning to car sharing.

It’s been estimated that U.S. automobiles and light trucks are responsible for nearly half of all greenhouse gases emitted by automobiles globally, and carbon dioxide emissions from personal vehicles in the United States equaled 314 million metric tons in 2004, according to a 2006 study by the Environmental Defense Fund. That study determined that while Americans own only 30 percent of the 700 million vehicles that are in use worldwide, cars in the U.S. account for a disproportionate amount of greenhouse gas emissions because they are driven farther, have lower fuel economy standards, and burn fuel with higher levels of carbon than many of the cars in other countries.

I-GO’s study indicates that its members effectively removed 9,451 cars from the roads, given that nearly half of its members reported selling or postponing the purchase of a car when they joined. Each I-GO car replaces 15 to 20 privately owned cars. I-GO members also achieved a reduction of approximately 119,558,984 vehicle miles traveled (VMT) in 2009, in comparison to the estimated amount of miles they would have driven had they not enrolled in a car sharing program. And they prevented an estimated 11.5 metric tons of volatile organic compounds (VOC) and 16 metric tons of mono-nitrogen oxides NO and NO2 (Nox) from otherwise polluting the atmosphere.

I-GO members reserve cars by the hour only when they need them, averaging short trips of two to three hours in duration, and drive 97 percent less per year, on average, than typical Chicago car owners. They rely more on public transit, bicycles, and walking as well. And I-GO employs only fuel-efficient, low-emission vehicles in its fleet. Gas-electric hybrid cars comprise approximately 40 percent of I-GO’s fleet, which also includes two plug-in hybrid electric vehicles capable of up to 100 mpg fuel efficiency. I-GO membership can help households reduce typical annual transportation costs of $7,300 by as much as $5,000 a year.