Zipcar Program

Goucher College has launched a new partnership with Zipcar, a cost-efficient, environmentally friendly car-sharing program.

Goucher students who are older than 18 and have a valid driver’s license, as well as the college’s faculty and staff, will have 24/7 self-service access to two Honda Civic Hybrids that are located in the Dorsey Center parking lot. Participants apply for Zipcar membership online, and the $35 application fee then counts as a credit.

Cars can be rented for an hour, up to three days. The weekday hourly rate is just $8, or $66 for a full day, and the weekend hourly rate is $9, or $72 for a full day.  The rates  includes gas, maintenance, insurance, reserved parking, and roadside assistance.  

Participants can make reservations months or minutes in advance by going online or using an automated phone system. Members get their own Zipcard, which they simply hold up to the car’s windshield to unlock the doors and drive away.

"Environmental sustainability is a critical component of Goucher’s Strategic Plan, and this partnership with Zipcar expands the alternative modes of transportation our campus community can use to help reduce the amount of pollutants that enter the atmosphere and compromise our planet’s long-term health," said Sanford J. Ungar, president of Goucher College.

For students who cannot or do not want to bring a car to school, Zipcar provides the freedom to travel off campus to attend interviews, run errands, or take a weekend trip. The program also eliminates hundreds of dollars in monthly transportation costs, saving members an average of $600/month or $7,200/year when compared with car ownership.

Becoming a Zipcar member means joining more than 300,000 people in 29 North America states and provinces and 50 cities throughout the United Kingdom. These members share 6,000 vehicles that have more stringent pollution controls than the average vehicle. On average, Zipcar members drive 2,500 fewer miles per year, saving 219 gallons of gasoline annually. It is expected that at current membership levels, Zipcar will save 16 million gallons of gasoline and 150 million pounds of CO2 annually.

Those interested in learning more about Zipcar at Goucher can visit www.zipcar.com/goucher for more information about membership and hourly rates.