Ithaca Carshare News

Ithaca Carshare News May 2020

Share with Care

Governor Cuomo’s executive orders 202.17 and 202.18 require the public to wear face masks any time 6’ social distancing is not possible and at all times when using public transportation or for-hire vehicles.

Our team is doing our part to keep carshare running safely by visiting each car that gets used on a daily basis with disinfectant wipes. We wear masks when we do this work to help our staff and our members stay safe. Cars are currently being used by an average of 2 people per day.

Please do your part to keep the carshare fleet safe by:

committing to use carshare only for necessary trips
wearing a mask or face covering in the cars
using the hand sanitizer provided whenever you enter the vehicle
bringing your own wipes to use before and after your trip if possible
minimizing eating or other activities that may leave crumbs, dust or dirt in the vehicle so that we can focus our cleaning efforts on disinfection

If you notice buckled seat belts in your vehicle, that means they have been disinfected (driver's belts do not get buckled). Please leave them buckled if you don't use them and unbuckled if you do.

If you are experiencing any symptoms of COVID-19, please do not use a carshare vehicle. If you develop symptoms or are confirmed positive after you have used a carshare car, please notify Ithaca Carshare immediately. Call 2-1-1 to schedule a safe ride to the COVID-19 test site in a clean, disinfected vehicle with ASAP cab.

Thanks for the Warm Fuzzies!

We continue to be heartened by words of encouragement and appreciation coming in from our members. Keep ‘em coming, they keep us going! We think you all are pretty great as well.

"I'm so grateful to everyone at Carshare for putting so much careful care, attention and energy into keeping the cars going during this time, thank you so much."

"You folks rock! Keep up the good work!"

"Thank you for being so awesome! I can't believe how fantastic this program is. :)"

"Thanks for all your effort to keep this initiative going."

"It is indeed amazing how you are running the car share service in this difficult time!! Thank you so much and stay safe yourselves."

"Your service is invaluable."

"I appreciate everything you are doing for our community!!!"

Pardon Our Dust

We’ve reduced our carwashing and vacuuming schedule in order to turn our staff focus towards daily disinfections. If you notice a vehicle in particular need of a vacuuming or exterior cleaning, please let us know .

Interested in Volunteering in the Community?

If access to a vehicle is a barrier to you volunteering as a part of COVID-19 response, let us know. We may be able contribute a vehicle, or help pair you to a cargo bike for uses that address community needs. Looking for ways to help out?

Mutual Aid Tompkins has opportunities connecting community members with immediate needs requests and to stock community food pantry cabinets.

United Way of Tompkins County is coordinating volunteers to help with COVID-19.

The Food Bank of Central NY and the Food Bank of the Southern Tier are in need of volunteers to support food distribution efforts.

We Are Ithaca 90-second report: Ana Ortiz continues to help the Ithaca community during the pandemic

If you are staying safe at home but still want to help support the volunteering cause, consider a donation to our fundraiser to support the efforts of volunteers like Ana in the above video. Or, consider donation directly to United Way, the Community Foundation, Cayuga Medical Center, or Mutual Aid Tompkins.

Donate Now

Looking Back: 2019 Carsharing Impacts

The fleet size increased from 26 to 30 vehicles.
Membership grew from 1,286 to 1,443 people.
New Ithaca Carshare members reported that they would sell or avoid the purchase of 113 vehicles.
As a result of the shifted driving habits of members and higher than U.S. average fuel economy, an estimated 11,272 gallons of gasoline use and 103 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions were avoided.
15,648 trips were taken totaling 198,451 miles, at an average of 2 hours and 12 miles each.
Fleetwide fuel economy was 20% above the 2019 national average.

Thanks to all of our members for being part of the positive impact of carsharing!

Check out the rest of the great work that happened at the Center for Community Transportation in our 2019 Annual Report here.

Buy Now & Drive Later

Purchasing pre-paid credits on your carshare account now for use later can help Ithaca Carshare weather the COVID-19 storm while continuing to offer low cost access to vehicles when you need them. E-mail or call us to make a purchase!

$100+ 5% off

$200+ $10% off

Order Now

If you are facing financial hardship during this time, please reach out to us. We may be able to help with the income eligible Easy Access membership, a payment installment plan, or by connecting you to other community transportation resources in our community that may fit your needs.