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Maidstone Car Club - County Hall

Are you fed up with sitting in traffic queues on the way to work and battling for a parking space? Or fed up with the high fixed costs of owning a first or second car that spends most of its time sat on the driveway? If so why not join the club - Maidstone Car Club that is!

Kent County Council are partnering with Car Club operators Streetcar to provide Kent's first ever Car Club.

The Car Club represents a unique partnership between the County Council and our residential and business neighbours to help tackle congestion in Maidstone. The scheme will serve as a pool car scheme for KCC staff, reducing the need for staff to travel by car at peak times, as well as serving local residents and businesses at evenings and weekends.

Streetcar offers self-service cars for rent by the hour, day, week or month. The cars are parked in a dense network of dedicated spaces in several UK cities including London, Brighton, Southampton and now Maidstone! Their new Volkswagen Polo Blue Motions can be booked for as little as 30 minutes at a time. They are reserved online or by phone, and can be collected and returned 24/7 using one of their high-tech smartcards and a PIN number.

On government figures, these Polos are currently the cleanest cars on the UK's roads, emitting just 99g/km of CO2 (a Toyota Prius Hybrid emits 104g/km).

Usage charges are based on how long you have the car, and how far you drive.

As an introductory offer, the Polo Blue Motions will be charged at the following rates:

1 hour : £3.95
24 hours (weekdays) : £28.00
24 hours (weekends) : £39.50

Streetcar just sends you a bill once per month. The scheme costs £49.50 per year to join. This equates to 95p a week and enables you to access Streetcar's fleet of over 600 VW Golfs as well as their vans and BlueMotions. The fee comes with a 3 month no strings attached money back guarantee. If at any time within the first 3 months you decide that Streetcar isn't for you, then they will refund your £49.50 membership fee back to you. No quibbles, no argument.

Usage charges are based on how long you have the car, and how far you drive. Streetcar just sends you a bill once per month. It is free to join, and there are no monthly or annual membership fees. When you join, Streetcar just take a £150 returnable deposit which is repaid if you no longer want to use the service.

Please visit the Streetcar website (link opens in a new window) to find out more, and how to join the scheme.

The Maidstone cars are located in designated bays at the end of County Road, immediately outside Sessions House at County Hall.

Copyright Kent County Council 2008