Stuttgart, November 10, 2011

car2go in Stuttgart

Stuttgart to become living lab for the future of urban mobility

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Photo, from left to right: Robert Henrich (CEO of car2go GmbH), Franz Loogen (CEO of e-mobil BW GmbH), Dr Dirk Mausbeck (Member of the Board of Management of EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG), Winfried Kretschmann (Minister President of Baden-Württemberg), Dr Wolfgang Schuster (Mayor of Stuttgart), Professor Thomas Weber (Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG, with responsibility for Corporate Research and Mercedes-Benz Cars Development), Dr Walter Rogg (Managing Director of the Stuttgart Region Economic Development Corporation (WRS GmbH)), Jörn Meier-Berberich (Commercial Director of SSB Stuttgarter Straßenbahnen AG)

The federal state of Baden-Württemberg and its partners – Stuttgart (the regional capital), Daimler AG, car2go GmbH, EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG and Stuttgarter Straßenbahnen AG (the tramway authority) – intend to make Stuttgart a living lab for the future of urban mobility from 2012. The core elements of the project are the establishment of the necessary charging infrastructure for electric vehicles and the introduction of a fleet of 500 electric car2go vehicles. At the same time, as part of a pilot project, mobility products and services within the Stuttgart integrated transport system (VVS), car2go vehicles and other mobility services will be linked together to create a network and offered to the public via an internet-based platform. Residents will be able to move around the city in a simple, flexible and environmentally friendly way. The aim is to make the project a cornerstone of Baden-Württemberg’s bid for the model project of the Germany-wide ‘National Platform for Electromobility’ initiative.

By next year, the strategic partners hope to make Stuttgart one of the most innovative cities in Europe in terms of mobility, with a broad range of initiatives. The key elements will include the development of the necessary charging infrastructure for electric vehicles by the energy provider EnBW and the provision of a large fleet of battery-powered electric car2go vehicles, which members of the public will be able to access via a fully automated rental operation. In addition, the Business Innovation unit of Daimler AG will work with partners including the Stuttgart integrated transport system (VVS) and Stuttgarter Straßenbahnen AG (SSB AG) to offer a multimodal network of transport providers and even a jointly operated electronic information and payment system.

The state of Baden-Württemberg will assume a key coordinating role and ensure that such projects are explicitly included as a goal in the Second State Initiative on Electromobility which is about to go before the regional parliament. Local company e-mobil BW GmbH and the Stuttgart Region Economic Development Corporation (WRS) are the central project coordinators in connection with the application to become a model project for the National Platform for Electromobility initiative. Minister President Winfried Kretschmann is in no doubt: “The project is an important milestone for us on the road to sustainable mobility. This partnership proves once again that Baden-Württemberg, the birthplace of the car, can bring together business and environmental interests in an exemplary way and that it deserves its leading position within the field of modern technology and innovative mobility concepts.”

Next year Stuttgart will also be able to offer its residents another progressive option for local emission-free driving. As part of the pilot project it will provide sites for the public charging pillars and the associated parking spaces, which will naturally then be available not only to the car2go fleet, but also to other electric vehicles. The mayor of Stuttgart, Dr Wolfgang Schuster, explains: “As Germany’s own ‘motor city’, Stuttgart has a special responsibility for developing and supporting new forms of mobility. That’s why I have been lobbying hard to bring car2go to our city. The fact that this will be the first purely electric fleet in Germany is an important milestone, and strengthens Stuttgart’s leading position as a centre of electromobility.” The local council will be discussing the matter next spring, once further details have been clarified.

Implementation of the concept hinges upon the establishment of the necessary charging infrastructure in the Stuttgart region, and the supply of green electricity. This will be the responsibility of EnBW. Energie Baden-Württemberg AG, Germany’s third-largest energy provider, has strong roots in Baden-Württemberg and will be able to build on the expertise gained from the electromobility pilot projects which were carried out in the form of demonstration projects for scooters and electric cars in the region. Around 500 charging points are planned. The locations of the charging pillars will be agreed between the project partners. “EnBW’s contribution to the project will be to provide the complete charging infrastructure and the green electricity needed for the electric cars to find their way to the people of Stuttgart and for the people of Stuttgart to find their way to electromobility,” says Dr Dirk Mausbeck, Member of the Board of Management of EnBW. “We are thereby laying the groundwork for a clean and almost silent step into the future. Although it is very much a research project at this stage, the environment still stands to benefit.”

The launch of the innovative mobility concept car2go – developed by Daimler AG as the world’s first fully flexible short-term car rental model – will be an important element of the project. Stuttgart will be the first German city to have a purely electric fleet of car2go vehicles, following the launch of the concept in Amsterdam and San Diego, California. All the cars will be environmentally friendly smart fortwo electric drives, which have a battery-powered range of around 135 kilometres. Professor Thomas Weber, member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG with responsibility for Group Research and Mercedes-Benz Cars Development says: “I am delighted that car2go is now coming to Stuttgart too. This project underlines our close ties to the region. As pioneers of innovative vehicle and mobility concepts, we are also providing a solution for the challenges of urban transport.” From the second half of 2012, registered customers will be able to select one of the several hundred vehicles in the fleet for a short-term rental, initially just within the city itself. The plan is to expand the fleet to a total of 500 vehicles and then to extend the operating area to the greater Stuttgart region. The managing director of Daimler subsidiary car2go GmbH, Robert Henrich, explains: “We are bringing the world’s largest electric fleet to Stuttgart. Electromobility and car2go are an excellent fit, and will offer the people of Stuttgart an attractive new form of individual mobility, which is also environmentally responsible and fun!”

The car2go mobility concept will be integrated into a wider multimodal concept that includes other transport solutions and will link together individual providers in the region. A first network will be trialled as part of a pilot project and will be available on an internet-based platform and via applications (‘apps’) on internet-enabled mobile phones. The Business Innovation unit within Daimler AG, where additional mobility services are currently being developed, shares responsibility for the establishment of this network with the tramway authority SSB. It is hoped that the findings of the pilot project will show the extent to which linking of different means of transport can lead to improved mobility and more efficient use of the available resources. The partnership will also include joint marketing activities and technical integration of information services. The comprehensive packaging of mobility services into one common electronic ticket is also being tested, along with a shared billing and payment system. This should enable customers to move easily between the various transport systems. “This model makes it possible to switch smoothly and easily between various means of transport provided by different operators, and our customers will be able to choose the means of transport that is most suitable for their needs,” says Jörn Meier-Berberich, Commercial Director of SSB AG.