Greetings from Hourcar,
You may be seeing or hearing some things about our technology transition. We are launching an ad campaign over
the next two months promoting Hourcar and transit use.
• FREE registration through 2/14 (normally $25), as well as $10 in driving credit
• $10 off registration and $10 driving credit from 2/14-4/9
• Use code SIGNMEUP for either of these promotions
I wanted to share this with you all so you may share with your community more broadly. In addition to these
promos and in direct response to the feedback from the engagement work you all did, we have lowered hourly
rates by about 40%, and now have a stopover rate which is even lower, and makes two-way trips even more
affordable. We have a $0 monthly “TRY IT” plan so people can sign up and not pay a monthly fee if they want to
see if they like it or if it’s of value for them. We have also done away with annual membership fees and made them
monthly so as to be more affordable, and we return membership fees in driving credit to our members. This
includes making the optional damage fee waiver a smaller, monthly fee. This is just the first step toward making
membership and usage more affordable to more people.
We are also up and running on our new technology platform. Through the engagement efforts, we heard a lot
about making sign up and usage easier and faster. We are now in week 2 of that launch. We are working hard to
transition our existing fleet to this new platform. People can now access everything from an app on their
smartphone, or sign up through a computer browser. The app is the easiest way to register, get approved, make
reservations, and manage payment methods. The new software now checks driving records in minutes (instead of
the days it took to do manual verification by HC staff). If needed, members can still use their bus card (Go-to card)
to get in and out of the car, although the app is more seamless.
Hourcar has a marketing and communications manager again (we were without for about 9 months). He and I will
be working on video tutorials for the new EV service in the coming months. Many of you told us about the need to
have these materials available in multiple languages, and to make sure we have people in the videos that reflect
the diversity of our communities. We are trying to brainstorm on how best to achieve this, and I will be sending
out a separate email to the group to have that conversation.
I do not have a specific launch date for the EV network yet but will keep you updated as we move closer. I am
hopeful that in-person demos can be done this year, but of course we do not have a good timeline on that yet.
Lissa Jones-Lofgren will be releasing her podcast series soon. This series is meant to be distributed widely to
community orgs, radio stations, etc. and focuses on the legacy of transportation in this country, and what
transportation equity looks like as we plan for the future. Once her team is finished with that, I’ll be sending it out
to all of you. Stay tuned.
This is all I have for you for now. As we continue to work to increase access, awareness, and affordability, please
keep an eye out for emails from me. I welcome conversation as we move forward, and please let me know how
Hourcar can continue to support all of you in the work you are doing.