Users of the Communauto car-sharing service are stamping their feet in the face of the problem of unavailability of vehicles, which were almost impossible to rent during the Easter weekend.
• Read also: Shortage of new vehicles: Communauto also suffers
“You always have to elbow and cross your fingers to get a car,” laments Jordane Samure, a resident of the Rosemont neighborhood in Montreal.
After subscribing to the Communauto car-sharing service in the fall of 2020, she realized that it was not as reliable as she had anticipated.
On a long weekend like Easter, for example, she “didn’t even think” of renting a car.
“If you want your car for this weekend, you book it a month in advance. It is a predatory behavior that is generated by the lack of availability and it is completely contrary to the principle of car sharing, ”she believes.
The Journal also noted yesterday that there were practically no cars available for rental and that “Flex” self-service vehicles were becoming very rare on the island of Montreal.
Eileen Henriot, who has been using Communauto for six years, says she has seen car availability deteriorate in recent years.
“There are more and more users, and the fleet has not followed,” she denounces.
“The fact that they lack competition is terrible,” she adds.
Raphael Balzan, who lives in Montreal, however, believes that there are even more advantages than disadvantages to being a Communauto subscriber. He says he saves $250 a month compared to a car payment.
“You really have to book in advance for the weekend,” he notes.
New vehicles
For its part, Communauto is aware of the problem that has already been raised internally by its subscribers.
“Today, the problem is the supply of vehicles and the growth of our subscribers”, twice as high as before the pandemic, affirms Marco Viviani, vice-president.
In November 2021, Communauto ordered 1,300 new vehicles.
These should arrive this summer, but it is still possible that this deadline will be pushed back, indicates Mr. Viviani.
“If we are able to bring in all these vehicles, I think it will be easier this summer,” he says.