HONOLULU, HAWAII—GreenCar Hawaii, the first car share company in Hawaii, officially launched at DoubleTree by Hilton Alana Waikiki Hotel, making this the first green, on-demand car sharing service by the hour available at an Oahu hotel. GreenCar is providing four 100 percent electric Nissan Leaf vehicles and two, Level 2 commercial charging stations by ECOtality as the initial Blink Network in Hawaii.
The Leaf, a five-door sedan, can be rented for $15 per hour or $95 per day. Third party electric vehicle (EV) owners can use the charging stations for a flat $5 fee.
“Through GreenCar Hawaii, we are making another contribution to Hawaii’s clean energy goal and providing our guests with a simple and convenient alternative to traditional car rental,” said Tom Herman, general manager of the DoubleTree by Hilton Alana Waikiki. “Our guests, patrons and the community now have access to on-demand mobility by hour directly from the hotel and at the same time help us support our global brand’s sustainability initiatives.”
Reservations can be made online, phone or at the GreenCar kiosk in the DoubleTree lobby. Guests check in at the kiosk to print an access voucher and their GreenCar is delivered directly to them by the hotel valet.
Eyes on Additional Hotels
“We are working with other hotels and properties on Kauai and Oahu to launch the GreenCar mobility alternative for visitors,” noted Justin MacNaughton, co-founder with Warren Doi of the hospitality service. “GreenCar is getting rave reviews, both from the management side and from guests, and we are really interested in helping to develop better ways to access and use mobility, while limiting the number of fossil fuel burning cars on Hawaii’s roads.”
In March GreenCar Hawaii was one of six companies selected from 19 applicants to the State of Hawaii’s Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT) EV Ready Grant Program, established to speed up market acceptance of EVs and related charging equipment, an important strategy in reaching Hawaii’s 70 percent clean energy goal. Funding for the grant program is provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, managed by DBEDT.
In June 2010, GreenCar launched its first car sharing platform with two hybrid-electric vehicles at Pure Kauai Luxury Getaways, followed a month later at the Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort and Spa in Poipu with four hybrid-electric vehicles for on-demand rental by the hour (or day) directly from the hotel. The company expects to complete agreements with additional hospitality network partners on Oahu and Kauai this year with up to six operating locations by mid-2012.
Articla taken from Green Lodging News. Read original version here.
