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BedZED - Beddington Zero Energy Development - in the London Borough of Sutton was the first new development in Britain to have a car club as part of the integral design; this helped underpin a case to reduce the usual parking provision by around 50%.
The development is an environmentally friendly and energy efficient mix of mixed tenure housing and workspace. A number of measures were included to encourage alternatives to car use:
BedZED has been designed to reduce the need to travel:
workspace and broadband facilities gives some residents the opportunity to work on site
located close to shops and a GP’s surgery
an internet shopping link with a local supermarket, with regular co-ordinated deliveries, reduces miles travelled for bulk shopping.
The site was chosen for its excellent public transport links: there are two railway stations, three local bus routes and a tram link nearby. Partnerships have been made with transport operators to provide discounts for car club members.
There is generous bike storage together with an active residents cycling group.
A ‘pedestrian first’ policy - with good lighting, drop kerbs for prams and wheelchairs and a road layout - keeps vehicles to walking speed.
On-site charging points for electric cars are provided, fed by solar power.
Car ownership is discouraged as residents have to pay £200 per year for a parking space. Only 85 parking bays have been provided, sited on the perimeter at the development; these serve 82 residential units, 14 live/work units and 10 work units.
The rate is reduced for LPG (liquid petroleum gas) vehicles, and both parking and fuel are free for electric cars, in order to encourage the use of greener fuels.
The on-site car club, ZEDcars, provides residents and businesses with access to a car for necessary journeys; membership is also open to the surrounding community. The car club is operated by City Car Club in partnership with BioRegional Development Group, the environmental consultants for the development. The three cars currently in the fleet are a Vauxhall, a Ford Focus and a Renault Clio.
The cars are fitted out with innovative technology from Drive-IT, Sweden. Access to the cars is by Smartcard, which only allows entry to a member during a pre-booked period. A computer terminal in the car interfaces with the booking software, allowing members to make or extend bookings, as well as enabling automation of invoicing. Bookings can also be made via a call centre or internet.
The car club, which was an integral part of marketing for the development, was launched in April 2002 as the first residents moved in. By March 2005 the club had 36 members: a number of residents have joined, and both the businesses currently on site have enrolled their staff who use the cars for both work trips and personal use.
Bookings can be made by the hour, day or weekend, while longer trips can be made at preferential rates through a national partnership with Vauxhall Rental.
Member Profiles
Nicola, age 29
“It’s a real luxury to have comfortable mobility on tap…and the huge amount of resources needed to make a car is shared out between several users”
Nicola lives and works on the BedZED site and was one of the first to take advantage of ZEDcars membership. She now makes regular use of the on-site vehicles, usually making a booking two to three times a week. “I was delighted to have the opportunity to join the club, as I find that I need the mobility of a car for some journeys,” she said.
For Nicola, the convenience of booking a car on the spur of the moment is a distinct advantage of the car club. She frequently books as little as fifteen minutes in advance, in order to give a lift to a friend or to transport heavy work items. Nicola sees this as a major advantage over conventional car hire; with the car club there is no time and effort required to fill in forms and therefore a minimum of forward planning is required.
Katrina, age 27
“Since joining the club we sold the company car”
As a busy young professional, Katrina takes advantage of the proximity of ZEDcars to her workplace. The flexibility of having well-maintained vehicles as and when she needs them persuaded Katrina’s workplace to give up their company car altogether.
Their main use of the car club to date has involved transporting display materials to exhibitions and picking up bulky work supplies. Katrina particularly appreciates the cost-effectiveness of the LPG (liquid petroleum gas) option on the dual fuel Astra estate.
Contacts
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Development: BedZED |
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Car club operator: City Car Club |
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Developer: Peabody Trust |
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Architect: Bill Dunster Architects |
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Sustainability consultants: BioRegional Development Group |
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