Carinthia drives greener

Electric car is like a scooter on four wheels

The e-car fleet in Klagenfurt comprises 23 Peugeots and seven Twingos.(Bild: Christian Tragner)

Electric vehicles in car-sharing mode can be seen more and more frequently on the streets of Klagenfurt. The operator "Avant2Go" now offers 30 cars at 16 locations. The minimum rate is 5.90 euros. Carinthians also drive more cheaply electrically.

Klagenfurt is driving greener: under this motto, e-car sharing provider "Avant2Go" has stationed 30 electric cars at 16 different locations in the provincial capital. "There's one at the airport, at the Minimundus, at Lakeside and in the city center," says traffic officer Sandra Wassermann (FP). "It's very easy to get started. All you have to do is upload your photo and driver's license to the app." Then you're ready to go. The e-cars are driven in the same way as automatic vehicles. This means there are only two gears: reverse and forward. It drives like a scooter, only you can get around comfortably on four wheels.

Samira and Viviane could switch to electric cars.(Bild: Christian Tragner)

The operator of the e-car fleet comes from Ljubljana. "There are already 1,000 electric cars in Slovenia and Croatia, we have 50,000 customers," says Matej Groselj: "In a year, we want to have 130 vehicles in Klagenfurt to replace the second cars in our families. A car costs around 700 euros a month to buy and maintain; the cost of an electric car would be reduced to 200 euros. The number of kilometers and time play an important role in the price."

The minimum rate is 5.90 euros, a daily rental costs 59 euros. "You can drive 55 kilometers with that," says Groselj.

Councillors Constance Mochar and Sandra Wassermann with e-car sharing.(Bild: Christian Tragner)

In the long term, the operators have even bigger plans. All shorter journeys in the city can be made in electric cars during the day. These vehicles can currently cover 320 kilometers. So you could also arrive at the airport and drive home electrically.

E-car sharing is one of 242 climate neutrality activities in Klagenfurt and costs 1.4 million euros. It is a key component of the city's comprehensive climate protection strategy.

"This e-car sharing model fits in perfectly with the mobility mix that we offer the citizens of Klagenfurt as well as tourists. Walking, taking the Nextbike to the nearest bus stop and getting to the lake every 10 minutes. This is the mobility of the future that we are offering with this project," says traffic officer Sandra Wassermann.