BMW Enters Car-Sharing Game In The US

German automaker BMW has just entered the car-sharing market in the US, but they will not go about it alone, of course, as they will be working with RideCell. This particular car-sharing service will be known as ReachNow, and ReachNow will allow Seattle residents to access approximately 400 cars from which they will be able to pick up as well as drop off just about wherever they prefer, with the only caveat being the drop-off point not being at the outskirts of town.

In due time, it is hoped that this particular idea will be able to be expanded across the various cities in the US, but that is still some time to go. Do bear in mind that this is not exactly a revolutionary idea as it has been explored before. For instance, Daimler has a service in the same vein that is known as Car2Go in New York, Austin, Minneapolis, Vancouver and Portland, Oregon, while its fellow German company, Audi, too has introduced a car-sharing service in San Francisco and Miami through the Audi at Home program.

Right now, BMW operates car-sharing services across 10 European cities, and it does seem to be a way in which additional revenue can be raked in by the car companies apart from selling their rides. It is interesting to note that RideCell’s customers could eventually be driven around in autonomous vehicles, but that will still be some time away before being realized.

Edwin Kee
Categories: Transportation
Tags: bmw, ridecell