Harrogate pioneers new green car scheme but is it time to declare a climate emergency?

Harrogate environmental campaigners have hailed a pioneering new hybrid car-sharing scheme in the town as a step forward on the road to cutting our carbon emissions.
New hybrid car scheme to reduce carbon emissions in Harrogate -  Harrogate Borough Councillor Phil Ireland, right, with Richard Falconer, managing director of Co-wheels.New hybrid car scheme to reduce carbon emissions in Harrogate -  Harrogate Borough Councillor Phil Ireland, right, with Richard Falconer, managing director of Co-wheels.
New hybrid car scheme to reduce carbon emissions in Harrogate - Harrogate Borough Councillor Phil Ireland, right, with Richard Falconer, managing director of Co-wheels.

Jemima Parker, chair of Zero Carbon Harrogate, said the fleet of nine new hybrid cars; seven Toyota Yaris and two Toyota Corolla estates, which is available to rent by the half hour to a full day, would send a sign that owning a car was no longer necessary.

Jemima Parker said: "The club gives you all the convenience of a car when you need one and none of the carbon cost of having a car manufactured just to sit outside your home for 90% of the time.

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"I'm already a member and hope others will sign up and try out this new service rather than pouring money into owning their own vehicle."

The fleet of hybrid cars is available now for the public to hire in Harrogate town centre with similar schemes to follow in Knaresborough and Ripon.

The new initiative is a joint project between award-winning social enterprise firm Co-wheels and Harrogate Borough Council.

The council has been under pressure from frustrated members of Harrogate Green Party who have claimed the council-sponsored Harrogate District Climate Change Coalition is in danger of becoming “just a talking-shop” unless major changes are adopted.

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But Harrogate Borough Council points to a list of environmental improvements already under way

and says the new car share scheme is more evidence of this fact.

Coun Phil Ireland, Harrogate Borough Council’s cabinet member for sustainability and carbon reduction, said: “We have ambitious plans to improve air quality and reduce carbon emissions across the district.

"A package of measures has already been agreed by the full council and forms our climate reduction strategy to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2038.

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"One way to support this is by encouraging people to reduce the number of cars in their household as well as the dependency of owning a car.

“Partnering with Co-wheels to run a car club scheme across the Harrogate district will give people the confidence to do this and will complement walking, cycling and public transport use.”

The environmental benefit of a hybrid car, which combines a petrol or diesel engine with an electric motor, is that consumes less fuel and emits less CO2 than a comparable conventional vehicle.

National studies also show that car share clubs can reduce car dependence with, on average, each car club car removing between 10 and 15 privately-owned cars from the road.

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Jemima Parker said: "I'm delighted that Harrogate has a car club. Zero Carbon Harrogate has been working with Harrogate Borough Council to bring a car club to the district as shared transport is such a good way to reduce our carbon emission."

Harrogate and the 'climate emergency'

Liberal Democrats opposition councillors have been pressurising the council to declare a 'climate emergency' for more than a year now.

There’s no single definition of what a climate emergency is, but many areas say they want to be carbon-neutral by 2030 - something Harrogate has already committed to.

Nearly two-thirds of councils in England have declared a climate emergency - but, so far, Harrogate isn’t one of them

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Back in 2019 Harrogate Borough Council leader Coun Richard Cooper said: “We shouldn’t actually be voting on whether there is a climate emergency or not. To have a vote is to say climate change is a matter of opinion - it is not, it is a fact.”

But Harrogate Green Party, which also sits on the Harrogate District Climate Change Coalition, argues that not enough has actually been done so far and has joined recent calls by Lib Dem councillors that it’s time to take the next step and form a non-party political Citizen’s Assembly in Harrogate and declare A ‘Climate Emergency.’

Arnold Warneken of Harrogate Green Party, and a member of the climate coalition, said: “I want the coalition to become a change-maker, not just a talking-shop.

"Now is the time for Harrogate to be brave and forward thinking - for example where are the sites for park and ride, where is the commitment for all council houses to be Passivhaus standard?

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"The Climate Coalition has an important role to play in guiding the council to declare a climate emergency, and then to strengthen the council’s commitment to achieve district-wide carbon-neutral status.”

How the new hybrid car share will work in Harrogate

Harrogate Borough Council has formed a partnership with National car share scheme Co-wheels to launch its first all-hybrid car share club.

A fleet of nine new hybrid cars, seven Toyota Yaris and two Toyota Corolla estates, is now available in Harrogate town centre for pay-as-you-go hire around the town for as little as 30-minutes up to full days.

Cars can be collected and parked all around Harrogate, which is the first time anywhere Co-wheels has done this without fixed parking bays.

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Each car has its own designated zone, and comes with a pass allowing parking anywhere in this area thanks to support from North Yorkshire County Council.

When booking a car, a handy location map on the Co-wheels app or website shows where the nearest one is.

Members are then emailed 15-minutes before the hire with the exact location of the car, which is also shown on the location map in the app.

Keys aren’t needed as members are provided with a smartcard to access the car. Members can also book cars in any of Co-wheels’ locations around the UK.

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Hires in Harrogate start from as little as £5.50 for one hour. Insurance, cleaning, servicing and refueling are all included in the cost too. A van is also available for hire as part of the new club.

To protect vehicle users, Co-wheels is carrying out extra measures to ensure the highest level of cleanliness.

Every vehicle is professionally cleaned regularly and all touch surfaces are cleaned with a revolutionary new disinfectant once a month that keeps surfaces germ-free for up to 30 days.

Special offer for Harrogate's new hybrid car share membership

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Richard Falconer, managing director of Co-wheels, said: “There’s a lot of great work going on to reduce carbon emissions in Harrogate which we are pleased to support with the launch of this new car club.

"We’re making it more accessible for people to have the option to hire a car when they need it rather than having to own a vehicle – it’s far cheaper and better for the environment this way.

“To celebrate the launch, we’re offering people in Harrogate £1 memberships and £40 credit to try our service.”

For more information and to sign up to the £1 membership and £40 credit offer visit www.co-wheels.org.uk/harrogate

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