Hertz and GM have announced plans for a large-scale expansion of their EV rental and charging programs, in what promises to be a huge win for both customers and the planet.
At the same time, rideshare giant Uber has stated that by 2030 it will phase out all ICE (internal combustion engine) vehicles from its fleet.
Hertz inks deal with General Motors
The Hertz and General Motors deal will see Hertz purchase up to 175,000 Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, Cadillac and BrightDrop EVs over the next five years.
It is possibly the largest single uptake commitment of EVs by a fleet customer and quite likely also the broadest. It follows Amazon’s statement it would buy 100,000 electric vans from EV start-up Rivian, and Hertz’s commitment to buy 100,000 Model 3s from Tesla.
The latest deal spans vehicle categories and price points from compact and midsize electric SUVs to electric pickups and luxury vehicles.
The agreement will see electric vehicle General Motors deliver EVs to Hertz up until 2027, saving approximately 1.8 million metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions based on an estimated 12.8 billion kilometres worth of distance covered by the EVs.
Hertz in 2021 said it had more than 400,000 vehicles in its fleets globally, down from a high of nearly 750,000 in 2019. It has also inked a deal with Polestar for 65,000 electric vehicles.
Uber to remove ICE from key fleets by 2030
In another big win for clean transport, Uber boss Dara Khosrowshahi has said that the rideshare government plans to go all-electric by 2030.
In a statement to CBS News, Khosrowshahi said: “We have a target to be fully electric in the US, Canada, and Europe.”
Importantly, excludes hybrids. If a driver cannot access or buy an electric vehicle, he says they will not be allowed to use the platform to offer taxi services.
The rideshare company already offers a 50% discount on fees for drivers who go electric. In April, Uber partner Splend also secured a $150,000 cash boost to transition to electric vehicles. It has since also cut a deal to roll out Polestar 2 fastbacks into its fleet of rideshare subscription vehicles.
Bridie Schmidt is associate editor for The Driven, sister site of Renew Economy. She has been writing about electric vehicles since 2018, and has a keen interest in the role that zero-emissions transport has to play in sustainability. She has participated in podcasts such as Download This Show with Marc Fennell and Shirtloads of Science with Karl Kruszelnicki and is co-organiser of the Northern Rivers Electric Vehicle Forum. Bridie also owns a Tesla Model Y and has it available for hire on evee.com.au.