Portland car owners will have a chance to pocket $300, if they sign up their vehicles for other drivers to use. Portland is officially test-driving a new kind of car-sharing beginning Wednesday.
The peer-to-peer car sharing business, called "Getaround" has run services in San Diego and San Francisco for about a year. It’s been in Portland for a few months.
Getaround founder Jessica Scorpio says a new $1.7 million federal grant will study how Portlanders share their cars, and how they respond to incentives.
"Some people don't even need an incentive to do this, we know that's the case since that's how it works in San Francisco and San Diego. But at the same time we feel that some people will want the extra incentive because they have to have the technology in their car," Scorpio says.
The technology needs to be installed to allow multiple drivers to use the car securely.
Scorpio says drivers can borrow cars for as little as two or three dollars an hour. She says participating car owners earn about $300 a month, on average.
Supporters tout car sharing's environmental benefits -- because it can lead people to drive less.
