With both sides of all the Squares lined nose to tail with vehicles of all shapes and sizes, pedestrians forced to walk on the road, and wing mirrors missing each other by millimeters, I can’t imagine many people in Strathbungo are happy with the parking arrangements.

Sadly Zipcar hasn’t strayed beyond the US, Canada and London, but a similar scheme is in place in the Southside of Glasgow – Whipcar

Unlike Zipcar which owns a fleet of cars available to zipcar members, Whipcar cars are owned by you and me but available to other whipcar members to rent by the hour, day and week. Eligible car owners and drivers register on line and simply accept or reject requests to rent it.

Owners set the price of rentals (against established guidance) and Whipcar makes its money by charging WhipCar owners a fee (15% incl. VAT of the rental price) and drivers a transaction fee (£2.50) when placing a booking.

The advantage of this scheme of course is that owners can make extra money for your car which would otherwise just sit idle in the road and drivers have access to cars without the expense of owning or the faf or expense of renting from a rental company. And of course if enough people used Whipcar there would be considerably less congestion in the Squares.

It all sounds like a recipe for disaster doesn’t it as friends and neighbours crunch or even write-off your car sparking neighbourly disputes. But Whipcar it seems have got this covered and gone to great lengths to reduce risks, vetting all cars and drivers with the DVLA, holding credit card details for all parties, and offering eBay-like feedback profiles. And the scheme won’t even affect your insurance, with Whipcar having created a special insurance package for the service. The moment you accept a booking on your car their insurance supersedes yours for the duration of the hire, keeping your no-claims bonus intact in the event of damage.

Costs vary depending on your car and location. Whipcar suggests that our 03 Mazda 6 estate can command £6/hour, £28/day or £154/week for us if we put it on the scheme. To save depreciation costs, MOT, annual servicing, fuel, insurance, road tax, accident insurance excess not to mention the hassle of parking I’d be sorely tempted…

Read press coverage here.