The Middlebury Campus

Issue date: 9/12/07 Section: Features

Media Credit: Angela Evancie Two Zipcars are now available on campus. They are parked next to the new Hillcrest Environmental Center. [Click to enlarge]

What better way to both save on gas and eliminate those long walks to student parking lots than to join Middlebury's Zipcar service? This year, the College will be offering Zipcars as an environmentally friendly alternative to bringing personal cars to campus.

Director of Business Services Thomas Corbin announced on September 7th that Zipcar, the world's largest car-sharing service, would make its debut at Middlebury on September 17th. "Middlebury will offer the college community access to two self-service Toyota Hybrid Prius Zipcars 24 hours a day, seven days a week," Corbin announced.

"ZipCars, bike rentals, ACTR and carpooling are all ways to reduce the overall impact of the College," explained Corbin. The College chose to offer the Toyota Prius as a way to advertise the effectiveness of hybrid cars, and to further the environmentally friendly nature of the program.

The Zipcars will be located in the parking lot adjacent to the Hillcrest Environmental Center. The cars will be available to all faculty, staff and student Zipcar members over the age of 18. A Zipcar membership costs $35 a year and includes gas, maintenance, insurance and convenient on-campus parking. Members can use a Zipcar for an hourly rate of $8, or a daily rate of $60.

Zipcar has similar programs at MIT, Columbia, Georgetown, Rutgers, American University, Harvard University, University of Minnesota, University of Toronto, University of North Carolina, and the University of Chicago. Middlebury College will be the first school in Vermont to offer the Zipcar. "This program has been very successful at other schools and we think it will be here," said Corbin.

Additional Reporting by Scott Greene, News Editor

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