Right now, car sharing is becoming increasingly popular in the Netherlands due to various factors – good for the environment, cost-effective, no need for a parking space or a parking permit, and no fixed monthly costs. Based out of Eindhoven, Amber is a fusion of an intelligent car-sharing platform with a modular, autonomous, and customizable electric car designed specifically to be shared.
Launching a new service
Recently, the car-sharing platform has launched a new service that allows users to pick up or drop off an Amber car on virtually any street corner. Notably, Amber is the first company to bring in this service to make car sharing easy and accessible. Right from September 1, all of Eindhoven will be an Amber hub, which means you can pick up or drop off your Amber anywhere in the service area. But if you happen to live a bit further away, you can now have an Amber car delivered to a location near you.
Hans de Penning, Amber’s CEO: “Initially, Amber was mainly suited to drivers who either worked for one of our corporate clients or lived near a hub. This service makes Amber available to many more people. If it is successful, we intend to expand it to other cities where Amber already has several hubs. The advantage of having your own car is that you can use it wherever and whenever you want. It gives you a sense of freedom. Amber already offered its users the certainty of having a car available at any time. Now we are giving them that extra bit of freedom by bringing the cars to them.”
Offers guaranteed, on-demand mobility at all times
According to the Royal Dutch Touring Club ANWB, the average mid-range car costs around €600 per month. However, the biggest obstacle to driving a shared car is the fear of not having a car available when you need it. And that’s where Amber offers a 100% trip guarantee. Founded by Merien ten Houten, Steven Nelemans, Amber works with over 300 employers and more than 9,000 users.
Monique List-de Roos, Alderman responsible for mobility: “More and more people are moving to Eindhoven city centre. The city is getting busier all the time. That means we have to take a different approach to mobility. Shared mobility is a wonderful way of contributing to a healthy, safe, and accessible city. I am really happy that this new service makes Amber’s shared electric cars available to many more people. We can use this, together with other shared mobility options, as a friendly way to encourage people to change their behaviour. Plus, it helps to keep the city accessible.”
Main image credits: Amber
