Car sharing provides users with vehicles on a self-service basis, 24/7 for the duration and destination of their choice. There are several types of car sharing.
Closed-loop : the vehicle is returned to the departure station or even to a dealership, as is the case with the Mobilize Share service.
Direct trace : the vehicle is returned to a station that may be different from the one from which it left.
These two types of car sharing require prior reservation.
Free-floating : the vehicle is parked on the street. It can be borrowed without reservation and returned to any on-street parking space within the geographical area covered by the service operator. The customer geolocates the vehicle using a dedicated smartphone application. Free-floating car-sharing is particularly suited to large cities. Zity by Mobilize is an example of free-floating car-sharing in Madrid, Lyon and Milan.
In addition to these three forms of car-sharing, there is also car-sharing between private individuals, often facilitated by a car-sharing platform.