Car clubs are an easy and affordable way to use a car or van without the need to own one.
Benefits include reduced private car ownership, trip mileage and air pollution, modal shift, financial savings compared to personal car ownership, and more efficient use of kerbside space. For less frequent drivers in particular, there are significant savings to be made by paying for car use on a trip-by-trip basis, rather than having to pay large lump sums for vehicle purchase/lease, tax, insurance, maintenance, fuel and other fees.
Research from CoMoUK (a national organisation promoting shared transport) outlines these car club benefits in greater detail.
There are already over 9,000 car club members registered within the borough, and this figure is growing monthly.
Our Kerbside Strategy recognises the important role that car clubs have to play in improving local air quality and helping to tackle the climate emergency, and it contains several actions to promote car club use and expand the number of bays (pending market analysis).
How it works
At present, vehicles are hired from specific car clubs bays in the borough, with the vehicle returned to the same bay at the end of your trip. Most car club operators provide a range of different vehicle types, from small city cars and SUVs to vans.
Most of the vehicles currently available in the borough are on-street, but some bays are located off-street within new residential developments that are publicly accessible at all times.
There are currently two car club operators with vehicles located in the borough: Enterprise and Zipcar. A variety of membership options are available, ranging from free annual membership to monthly subscriptions, with regular promotions available. Vehicles can then be hired by the hour or day.
For further details on driver eligibility, latest pricing (including current promotions) and vehicle locations, please check the below links to the operator websites:
- Visit the Enterprise website (8 car club bays)
- Visit the Zipcar website (26 car club bays)
Zipcar withdrawal from the UK
On 1 December 2025, Zipcar announced their intention to cease all UK operations, subject to formal consultation with their impacted employees. Zipcar has indicated that during this period, they will not be accepting new member applications and they will temporarily stop taking new bookings beyond 31st December 2025. At the time of announcement, Zipcar did not confirm timelines for ceasing operations, but there is potential that they will withdraw from Hounslow and other UK cities in early 2026.
We recognise that Zipcar’s decision to cease its operations will come as a disappointment to many of our residents, businesses and indeed Council staff, who have come to rely on the service they provide. Our thoughts are also with those Zipcar employees directly affected by this decision. The Council is keen to achieve continuity of service if possible; however, the timescales for doing so are somewhat challenging, particularly with the Christmas period imminent. We are currently exploring options and will provide an update on our website as soon as next steps are confirmed.
For further information, please visit Zipcar’s FAQ website.
