• Citiz officially arrives in Nantes on September 18 with, to begin with, 22 vehicles spread over eleven stations.

  • The historical operator, Marguerite, has about sixty cars.

  • Carsharing cars can be rented by several users on the same day.

It's a small revolution in the field of mobility in Nantes. After thirteen years of monopoly in the City of the Dukes, the Marguerite car-sharing company sees a competitor land this week. The private operator Citiz, already present in 150 French cities, will officially launch its activity on Saturday. For starters, Citiz will offer 22 self-service vehicles spread over eleven stations across the city. Positioned in the public space, these will be found roughly around the city center: from Talensac to Mangin-Beaulieu from north to south, from the south station to Canclaux from east to west.

The principle of use is the same as Marguerite: the cars are accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week, via registration “even at the last minute”.

The vehicles can be unlocked with a badge or a smartphone and must be returned to the same place.

“The idea is to make use as easy as possible.

Some will rent a car for runs of a few hours, others will need it for the weekend or vacation.

We aim to meet a wide range of needs ”, explains Marc Paresys, development manager of Citiz Nantes, who confides that the company“ wanted to set up in Nantes for several years already ”but was waiting for a green light from Nantes Métropole.

"There is room for two actors in Nantes"

For its deployment in Nantes, Citiz joined forces with the Titi Floris cooperative, which specializes in on-demand transport for disabled people. A few large vehicles (van, minibus) and adapted for people with reduced mobility can thus be rented. “It's quite rare to find this range in carsharing,” emphasizes Marc Paresys.

In terms of prices, a rental costs on average 2.50 euros per hour (plus 0.37 euros per kilometer) with a monthly subscription of 12 euros per month.

Without a subscription, it takes around 5 euros per hour (plus 0.37 euros per kilometer).

Fuel is included.

It's slightly cheaper than Marguerite, especially on long term rentals.

A Citiz subscription also allows you to borrow vehicles in other cities of the network (Rennes, Angers, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Marseille, etc.).

“We have a model that has proven itself elsewhere.

There is clearly room for two players in Nantes, ”considers Marc Paresys.

"Public space should be reserved for the short term"

But what does the incumbent operator think of this new competition? “We welcome it rather favorably because it is an extension of the offer which will bring a new demand. If Nantes residents get used to seeing self-service cars, more and more of them will want to try them, ”said Denis Maure, co-founder of Marguerite. The leader of the Sepamat group, majority shareholder of Marguerite, however regrets that Citiz facilitates long-term rental. “We consider that public space should be reserved for a short period of time, that's what carsharing is all about. If the cars leave for a weekend or longer, they are no longer available to users. This is not how we will convince the people of Nantes to abandon their private car, ”criticizes Denis Maure.

Thirteen years after its launch in Nantes, Marguerite has 62 cars spread over 50 stations. Steadily growing, it claims 3,000 active users (40% of which are professionals) and 12,000 trips per year. The average rental period is three hours. “At the beginning we had to convince and reassure about the concept, remembers Denis Maure. From now on, carsharing seems to me to be well identified. We affect all populations in terms of age or SSC. It is above all a behavioral choice. "

Installed in most of the large French cities, the main advantage of car-sharing is to reduce the use of private cars.

The majority of subscribers thus forgo the purchase of a second vehicle for the household.

Some do without a car altogether.

"We also observe that a car-sharing enthusiast will use public transport or bicycle more," adds Marc Paresys.

He knows how much his trips cost and will try to make them profitable.

It is therefore beneficial for intermodality.

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