Students who use car sharing service Zipcar in Brookline may have to find new transportation unless zoning amendments are passed to allow the cars to stay, officials said.
Zipcar, a private company that parks cars in accessible areas for members to drive by the hour or by the day, currently has 78 cars in Brookline, many of which violate the zoning bylaw defining where commercial vehicles are allowed to park, according to a municipal factsheet. The current regulations only allow car-share vehicles to be parked in commercial zones.
Each car sharing vehicle is the equivalent of 15 to 20 people having their own car, according to the factsheet, and each vehicle is reserved to be driven 1.5 times per day.
Brookline is currently considering two municipal amendments to allow Zipcar to stay in a way agreeable to the city. One would allow Zipcars to park in residential lots, while a second would allow for a portion of all lots to be rented to car-sharing organizations at a cost to the company.
Brookline will vote on these options at its town meeting on either Nov. 17 or Nov. 18, Brookline Advisory Committee Vice Chairman Neil Wishinsky said in an email.
Wishisnky said he thinks Zipcars should be allowed, though regulated so they do not have a negative impact on the neighborhood.
‘Having a shared car available has allowed many residents to either forgo car ownership entirely or reduces the need for a second car,’ Wishinsky said. ‘Many residents told us that their ability to afford to live in Brookline was dependent on having a shared car available.’
If the city accepts one of the proposed amendments, Zipcars will have much more wiggle room to park in Brookline, he said.
‘There are many places in Brookline that would be allowed to host Zipcars under any proposal that is currently in play,’ he said.
Zipcar representatives did not respond to requests for comment before press time.
Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences sophomore Betsy Cook said she thinks Brookline has the right to regulate Zipcars because parking space in the Boston area is limited. But she said limiting car sharing could have a negative effect on the environment.
‘The concept of Zipcar is important because it reduces pollution,’ she said.
Cook said she thinks constraining Zipcar in the residential area of Brookline is a way residents may be alienating college students, many of whom use Zipcars after turning the minimum age of 21.
College of Arts and Sciences junior Bobby Goldsmith, who lives in a BU building in South Campus, says that he thinks not enough BU students rent Zipcar in Brookline for there to be student impact.
Although the car-sharing organization is usually praised for being environmentally friendly, Goldsmith thinks the Zipcars have the opposite effect.
‘[Not using Zipcars] will serve to benefit the environment because students will be more likely to take public transportation or walk somewhere,’ he said.
Glenn Harris, a School of Management junior who lives on Egmont Street in Brookline, said he thinks the neighborhood should not have to stoop to accommodate Zipcars.
‘I think it’s cool there’s a service to share cars, but parking in the city in Boston is bad and doesn’t cater to commuters,’ Harris said. ‘I think it should be Zipcar’s responsibility, and they should be held liable to find a place to house the cars.’
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