Philadelpia Freed ‘Em

Last weekend in Philly was a great time which certainly made me appreciate the appeal of its relatively lower cost of living than New York.As NYC debates congestion pricing, it was interesting to see Philadelphia embrace such a wide variety of car-sharing co-ops such as Zipcar and an omnipresent PhillyCarShare.I was already familiar with the rent-by-the-hour concept of Zipcar, which exists in a few major US cities and has been well documented, but PhillyCarShare is particularly interesting.This service seemed to be everywhere in Center City. Every car looked fun to drive. It’s even a non-profit organization which aims to “… maximize the economic, environmental, and social benefits of reduced automobile dependence in the Philadelphia region through community-based car sharing.” What’s not to love about a service who promises to provide you with cool cars, primo designated parking spots with a minimum of the hassle of car ownership? Just look at these parking spots….Not only do they have a very nice logo and corporate identity, there were plenty of place for bicylces to lock-up, too.It seems that NYC has a way to go before we tame our traffic woes. Yet, as much as I love my car, the idea of truly easy, inexpensive alternative is quite appealing.Such better alternative to the phugly Philadelphia Phlash trolly.Cue the obligatory MINI Cooper picture…