About Us
Moorcar started in Ashburton in 2002 with one lease car and six members. Probably like a great many people today facing fuel price rises, inadequate bus services and constant parking problems these pioneer members thought it would be a good idea get away from everyone having to own their own car, why not try to share one.
Moorcar now has seven cars across four towns on the southern edge of Dartmoor.  The car club is such a good idea that word has spread that people can give up the second family car, or even only use a Moorcar car when the bus is not running. It can save you money which is always a popular idea.
We started as a member co-operative so that people could become involved in the running of the club. It is part of our success that we ask the community for help in finding parking spaces or to help clean and maintain the cars.  These are the strengths of our small towns and villages where people still know their neighbours.  Word of mouth is the best recommendation and even more important with something like the car club.
Getting around can be a serious headache which is why owning a car is seen as a priority.  Breaking this reliance on the private car is always going be difficult.  In sixty years we have designed our ;lives around the car.  Where you work, how you relax, which school your children go to, shopping and the list goes on.
So is it inevitable that owning a private car will be the only choice for everyone wishing to enjoy the freedom and convenience of driving.  Not necessarily, but then I would say that.
In the past six years we have persuaded nearly 120 people to try the car club.  We currently have eighty members sharing our cars for those regular journeys, the school run, shopping, taking compost to the allotment, going to the theatre. Moorcar does make a profit but this is used to grow the network to more towns, excuse the pun!
What we are trying to do now is help other communities set-up a car club and use our experience and website to make this as easy as possible.  If you have a car that you feel you can share with other car club members then we can help.  There are a number of towns already using our website to make bookings and it is as easy as reading you way here.
Contact me Jeremy Farr on 07753325014 and  have a chat about the options.



About us 
The last six years

Recent research by the Countryside Agency (2000) found that transport is the single most important concern of people living in rural areas.
During the summer of 2000 a feasibility study was conducted into the possibility of starting a car club in Ashburton.  A small group of environmentally concerned residents wanted to find an alternative to inadequate public transport and relying on private transport. 
In 2002 Carplus sponsored a rural car club programme in partnership with Sustrans and the Countryside Agency, which funded the project. The programme was to set up 10 pilot projects in a wide cross-section of rural areas to learn whether they could be a success and collate best practice. Some were concentrated on one town, while others cover a number of smaller communities.
Ashburton on the southern edge of the Dartmoor National Park was chosen because of the demographic characteristics of the small rural market town.  Moorcar became the first rural car club in the UK when it was launched in September 2002 with six pioneer members and one car.  By the end of the pilot period on March 31st 2004 the car club had attracted 27 members and had two lease cars.  
It was obvious that the car club would need to own the vehicles if the car club was to continue past the pilot study.  With support from the Countryside Agency and a successful application to the Dartmoor National Park Sustainability Fund, Moorcar was able to expand to the neighbouring town of Buckfastleigh.
Over the next two years Moorcar has added further cars in more towns across South Dartmoor with the ambition to become financially self-sustainable.  The funding has been essential to allow the concept of the car club to become accepted as a reliable means of transport.  To reiterate 'transport is the single most important concern of people living in rural areas.'   
 
Rural Car Club in South Devon case study DfT 2006
Accessibility is a big concern for many of the residents of Ashburton.  Firstly, a significant number of people do not have a private vehicle.  Nearly 20% of the households do not have a car and a further 50% have one car only.  Many of the people living in the one car households are effectively car less throughout the day when one member of the household uses the only car to commute to work.  One of the main reasons for people not owning a car, or families having one car only, is the high cost of maintaining a legal and roadworthy vehicle.  Wages across Devon, including Ashburton, are low compared to the national average.  In addition, 32% of Ashburton’s population is of retirement age, with many of them living on a low income.   
The limitations of public transport in rural areas means that those without car access really are ‘transport poor’. Moorcar has targeted households either having no car or where one member of the household uses the car to travel to work. The relatively high proportion of the population who are at, or approaching, retirement age may raise the level of demand because this group tends to have relatively low incomes but does not have the regular travel commitments that necessitate owning their own car. 
Ashburton does not have a rail connection and although it is fairly well served by buses during the day, there are no buses in the evening and a very limited Sunday bus service.  As a result residents find it difficult to access many vital services and locations including supermarkets, adult education classes, hospitals, employment and leisure and social facilities.  
Ashburton is however a town with a strong community spirit and a significant number of people interested in reducing car dependency for environmental as well as economic reasons.  
Moorcar has been set up as a not for private profit making community co-operative with a paid part time co-ordinator.  The members of the club own the cars and share the cost of insurance, tax, breakdown cover and servicing between the membership.  Joining the car club is straightforward; people fill in 2 forms; one for membership and the other for insurance.  They then meet up with the Co-ordinator to submit their current driving licence, pay their membership fee, sign their contract and receive an induction. 
Members of the car club pay an annual membership fee of £150 at £12.50/month by standing order along with a returnable deposit of £100.  To encourage greater take up of membership, Moorcar also offers a cheaper £50 rate membership to people that are low users of the club.  The cost of using one of the cars depends upon which vehicle is booked, the length of time they require it and the amount of miles driven.  The combined cost of membership and use are cheaper than owning a car, particularly for people who do not do a high mileage.  
Booking is straightforward via an online facility which lets members see which cars are available and shows a confirmation of the booking on screen while an e-mail is sent to confirm the details of the booking. At the end of each month records are downloaded from the online booking system and a statement is generated giving members details of hours of usage, mileage and any credits due from paying for fuel.   Members are then billed for their usage each month.
Flexibility is key to ensuring the success of the car club; members can book out a car for as little as half an hour or for longer periods of time.  They also have a choice of diesel vehicles ranging from a 4 seater Seat Arosa Hatchback, a Golf estate and a larger 7 seater VW Sharan.
When Moorcar started in September 2002 there were 6 members and two lease cars, by August 2006 seventy five residents had tried the car club with the current membership standing at 57.  Moorcar has identified that carers of small children, the self-employed and older residents on a fixed income are the majority of their current membership.  Fifty per cent of Moorcar members no longer own a private car and rely on the car club for all their private transport needs.  
The number of cars and towns Moorcar serves has also increased.  Moorcar started with two cars in Ashburton, it now owns six cars and has grown to serve the neighbouring towns in the Dartmoor National Park of Buckfastleigh, and Chagford.  There are imminent plans to expand into South Brent with an additional two cars.  
Opportunities and benefits of a rural car club
The benefits and opportunities that have arisen from the car club are greater then first envisaged.   Car clubs bring social, environmental and economic benefits to both individuals and the community as a whole.
Moorcar has enhanced social inclusion for its members as they now have greater access to the vital services and locations they require.  Many parents use the cars during the school holidays to take their children to the beach and other leisure facilities and parents of younger children use them during term time to take their little ones swimming or on the weekly food shop.  Part time workers use the cars regularly to get to work.  Retired couples make use of a car to go shopping or to pick up larger items they couldn’t carry on a bus.  Many members find the cars useful when they have guests to stay or when they want a day out. One member who is a keen naturalist regularly uses the car to go out butterfly spotting, an activity that is impossible to do on public transport as the buses do not run to the locations he wants to go. 
The cars are not only used to meet the transport needs of individual households, the cars are also used to meet the journey requirements of groups of people within the community.  For example, on school days in Chagford the 7 seater Sharan takes a car full of children to school in Ashburton, thus reducing the number of cars involved in the school run.  For a few months in 2004, the local bus service between Ashburton and Totnes was withdrawn.  The withdrawal of the Totnes bus meant residents were unable to get to their nearest train station or visit the very popular Friday market.  Again an MPV was used to take a number of Ashburton residents into Totnes every Friday until the Totnes bus service was reinstated.  
Research in both the UK and overseas (www.carplus.org.uk) has shown that car club members become more adept at travel planning making greater use of public transport and lift sharing, thus reducing the number of car journeys and the associated carbon emissions.  Moorcar has specifically chosen to operate with diesel cars because of the efficiency on relatively longer rural journeys.  The intention is also to increase the proportion of bio-diesel as the manufacturers warranties expire on the newer vehicles. 
Ashburton, Chagford and Buckfastleigh are small market towns with narrow streets and limited on-street parking.  All the towns are popular with tourists, which puts a strain on the limited car parking available during the summer months.  Car clubs contribute to the regeneration and prosperity of rural towns by reducing the use of on-street parking and freeing up parking spaces for shoppers and visitors to use.  Research (www.carplus.org.uk) has shown that one car share vehicle replaces up to six privately owned vehicles.   Moorcar has attracted members specifically because of the access to designated parking within the conservation area in the centre of Ashburton and Chagford.
Challenges 
When Moorcar initially started the main challenge was to build up the membership.  Moorcar employs a part time Co-ordinator who has the patience, persistence and persuasive nature required to champion Moorcar and build up the membership in the community.  The role of the Co-ordinator as a champion is vital, research into rural car clubs by the Countryside Agency (2004) found that those car clubs with local champions were the most successful at recruiting members and establishing the car club.
Finding appropriate parking spaces can also be a challenge.  Designated parking spaces in public car parks are not really suitable as the parking space may not be free when the car is returned.  In addition, using public car parking spaces means one less space available to shoppers and visitors to the town.  The cars also need to be parked somewhere fairly central, as too much of a walk to pick up the car will put many people off becoming members. Again this is where the role of the Co-ordinator is vital as they have the time to locate suitable parking places.  
As membership to Moorcar has expanded the challenges have changed. The growth of Moorcar is driven by the requirement to become sustainable and to meet the full operating costs of the car club to include the replacement of vehicles.  The urban car club model is based on numbers of users and vehicles, which are not achievable in small towns. By operating a network of car clubs across the National Park, Moorcar has been able to benefit from sharing the marketing and administration costs over a larger user base. This will ultimately help to ensure sustainability and allow a lower pricing structure.
The community co-operative structure has been very effective in encouraging co-responsibility from the membership.  Damage to the vehicles is always reported quickly and the cost of repairs shared amongst the membership.  The strong sense of community has also been expressed in the voluntary contributions to the car club from the membership.  Members have taken on the regular car cleaning and the occasional need to move vehicles around between car stations.
However, the distance between the towns has now raised difficulties in engaging members in the constitutional structure of the co-operative.  A management group elected by the general membership and approved at the Annual General Meetings has decided operating policy.  In the future additional car stations in other towns will require differential pricing to reflect business plans based on commercial loans to purchase vehicles.  It is predictable that these new members will be only concerned with their own vehicles and the pricing structure related to their car club.
The benefits of shared infrastructure will require to be balanced with the need for accountability across the diversity of satellite car clubs.  It is possible that a more flexible legal framework for holding assets and paying dividends to members on share capital will also be needed.
Future Plans
A ride-sharing option is integrated into the current Moorcar internet-based booking system. Because each car-club becomes a small community of users known to each other there is greater potential for ride-sharing than under anonymous systems. The possibility of sharing hire costs adds an incentive. 
Ride-sharing targeted at young people has the longer term aim of involving young people in making choices that are environmentally sustainable.  This facility will be of particular benefit to young people who face real difficulties accessing social and recreational activities. Moorcar has developed an on-line questionnaire with local young people to promote this solution. (see www.e-cocars.com)
Moorcar has plans to expand to serve other towns in South Devon.  A new website is nearly finished to allow many more car clubs to be shown on the booking system.  The website will allow access to information about the car club and how to join on-line.  It will also direct members to a choice of town and the cars available at these various locations.
Sources of Information 
www.carplus.org.uk
Rural Car Clubs (2004) Countryside Agency