To mark Earth Day 2017 (Saturday, April 22nd), GoCar is announcing ambitious plans to remove up to 5,000 private cars off the streets of Ireland by the end of 2017.

GoCar hope to achieve this by growing its fleet of shared cars to over 300, including launching in a new county this summer. The car sharing company is asking the public to visit GoCar.ie to vote for which county they should go to next.

By encouraging multiple people to share a single car, car sharing reduces car dependency, congestion, noise and air pollution, and frees up land traditionally used for parking spaces. Each shared car has been proven to replace up to 15 private cars, as well as increasing use of public transport. GoCar allows people to hire cars for as little as 30 minutes, using a booking system to reserve the vehicle and in-car technology to unlock the car and drive it. Fuel, tax, insurance and maintenance are all included.

Car sharing is ideal for people who only need occasional access to a car but don’t want to own one, or families who want to sell their primary or second car. It also allows those who cannot afford a car the opportunity to drive on a pay-per use basis.