With the Canada Day long weekend approaching, many people look to get out of town, possibly to visit friends and family, or head up to the cottage. For many of these trips, cars will be needed to go back and forth. For a lot of people living in Toronto, owning a car may not be necessary or simply unaffordable, but there are services that fill in the gap.
Car-sharing is booming in popularity in Toronto, and it is easy to see why. Using a car when needed is much better than purchasing one to use part-time. Throw in free gas and insurance and the appeal of car-sharing becomes even clearer.
One of the two popular car-sharing services in Toronto is Zipcar. I recently signed up for a membership and thought this would be a great opportunity to try their app.
This free app, available for iPhone and Android, makes it very easy to find and reserve vehicles. There are three tabs for users to access: Reserve, Drive and My Zipcar.
The Reserve tab is very simple. Pick the time you would like to reserve a car and search by day, location and by a specific car, if needed. By clicking on Find Cars, a list of available cars appear. A map option is also available.
Once you settle on a vehicle, a brief description of the vehicle comes up including your booking information and the cost. In addition, this area offers “good to know” information which explains the capacity of the vehicle and what can be fit into it. From here, hit the reserve button and you are done and ready to pick up your car and drive away.
The Drive tab allows drivers to lock, unlock and activate the alarm on their vehicle while using it with a virtual fob. This is especially handy because Zipcar recommends drivers keep the keys inside the vehicle.
There’s no need to worry about losing something you never had. Your phone, through the app, becomes your car keys. Your pockets, and thighs, will thank you for not gouging them with a large set of keys. In addition, if you lose your membership card the app can fill in temporarily. If drivers encounter a situation there is a link to call Zipcar if any problems occur.
The final tab, My Zipcar, allows users to check on current and upcoming reservations and report any issues through email.
If you are looking to get out of the city, move or get some serious shopping done, car sharing is a great way to get it all done. If you’ve already signed up with Zipcar, or are looking to, take a few seconds to download their app and try it out. It is a great value-added feature for members.
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Rob Kirsic writes the App of the Week column for Toronto Standard. Follow him @robertkirsic.
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