By: Connor Schaeffer
A new company wants to help students solve their transportation issues and provide them with the opportunity to drive to school.
Many students at Algonquin College drive to school, which means buying a parking pass, paying daily or paying hourly. These options all require students to spend money for parking and are often frustrating and stressful.
Students who own their own car already have the cost of buying or leasing the vehicle as well as the costs of insurance, gas, repairs and parking.
Many students who cannot afford these costs are unable to drive to school and therefore are reduced towards using other modes of transportation.
The company, Student Car Share, partnered with Discount Car and Truck Rentals, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), and KIA Canada, to introduced the first car rental company catering to students. Student Car Share (SCS) is the first and only Canadian car rental service that allows members to be as young as 18 years old. Other companies have age requirements of 21 or 25, neglecting young drivers such as students.
SCS launched on Sept. 2 and is available at 16 Ontario universities and colleges, including Algonquin, Carleton University and University of Ottawa.
“We are trying to make life easier for students,” said Michael Lende, CEO and founder of Student Car Share.
A membership with SCS costs $50 a year plus a $25 application fee. Rates start at $8 per hour or $56 per day. These costs include gas, insurance and 24/7 roadside assistance. To become a member you must be at least 18 years of age or older, have a minimum valid G2 drivers license, a valid credit card, have had no more than one minor moving violation within three years, although one at fault accident in the last six years is allowed.
Student Car Share currently employs Algonquin advertising student Olivia Leblanc, who is also in charge of advertising and coordinating promotions for SCS. “ Students can really benefit from the program,” said Leblanc.
Currently there are two cars parked at Fallowfield and Woodroffe station, six km away from Algonquin. Student Car Share is trying to obtain parking on campus but is having a hard time doing so because of the limited parking at Algonquin. Lende said the company is “environmentally friendly” and “reduces the amount of cars on the road and in the parking lot.”
Allowing Student Car Share parking on campus could actually reduce the amount of cars driving to school and might also be a solution to Algonquin’s parking problems. “Fifteen parking spots turn into one because students are sharing the car,” said Lende. The Student Car Share program would pay for any and all parking spots that are given to them.