Carsharing services like Uber/Lyft will spur self-parking/self-driving & reduce ownership

frostsullivanThe needs of commuters will support carsharing which will expand services and grow in popularity reports Frost and Sullivan.

Carsharing operators (CSOs) are developing novel business models to address the evolving mobility demands of commuters. News service coming will be self-parking services in which members tdrop off vehicles at designated parking lots. Then the services will gradually roll out short-distance parking service, where self-driven vehicles will be driven into parking lots. Eventually, collaboration with key players and convergence with public transport will change the mobility industry.

Frost and Sullivan reports that as automated driving dilutes the need for personal ownership, traditional car owners will gravitate toward carsharing services. Increase traffic congestion and pollution due to the development of mega-cities and urbanization creates a a favorable environment for efficient travel services.

“The convenience, flexibility and security of carsharing services make a strong case for the adoption of integrated mobility services,” said Mobility Senior Research Analyst Krishna Achuthan. “This, in turn, will lead to a number of mergers and acquisitions among industry majors that recognize the market benefits of offering such systems and digital platforms.”

In addition to market consolidation, technology advancements and government initiatives will give a huge boost to carsharing services, with the number subscribers expected to cross 36 million by 2025 from 7.9 million in 2015. However, to achieve optimum market potential, CSOs need to counter the high insurance cost and inadequate demand in areas with low population density.

In North America, tere are more than 75 cities with population over 300,000 in North America. However, one-way operations are currently available only in 16 cities, resulting in a huge untapped market potential market.

BMW’s DriveNow and ReachNow, Daimler’s Car2Go, Zipcar, Bollore Group and GM currently are the prominent players in the space. This pool of competitors is set to expand with advancements in public transit systems.

“Physical integration of public transit systems with carsharing will allow users to book both cars and train tickets through one single mobile app and thereby, enhance convenience and drive member growth,” noted Achuthan. “In future, carsharing models are likely to expand to include peer-to-peer and corporate services on the same platform, as well as consolidate with adjacent mobility services like leasing, car rental and bike sharing.”

The new study Future of Carsharing Market to 2025 is part of the Automotive & Transportation Growth Partnership Service program.