(Last Update: 12.04.2023 – IMPORTANT NOTE: Paris Municipality decided to remove Autolibs and terminate the project!)
Guest Writer: Vincent Telpitxky
1 – What is Autolib?
If you've ever walked the streets of Paris, you must have noticed these chubby gray cars.
These cars, which you will not encounter in Turkey and outside Paris in general, are called "Autolib'". You can use these cars, which are completely electric and the rental fee is determined per minute, between Autolib' stations in the four corners of Paris, just like Velib' rental bikes.
The 'Autolib' project started in the mid-2000s. 'Autolib' is a project carried out by Groupe Bolloré, one of the richest groups in France, conceived as a solution to the parking problem and polluted air problem in Paris. The first Autolib stations were opened in 2011. Then, when the suburbs around Paris joined the Autolib project, the number of Autolib cars and stations increased. Today, an average of 1.100 reservations are made per day at around 4.000 stations, with approximately 16.500 electric cars. Although most of these stations are in Paris, you can reach many places in the suburbs using Autolib.
2 – Tips for using Autolib:
Subscription price
There are 2 types of subscriptions:
“Prêt à Rouler Ready to Go” | “Premium / 1 Year Subscription” | |
Subscription fee | 0€ | 120€ per year (*) |
minute rate | €0,32 | 0,23€ |
Reservation fee | 1€ | Free |
Parking reservation fee | Free | Free |
Can you earn points? | No | Yes. See: Autolib' Club |
(*) If you live in Paris, the most logical thing is to subscribe. The subscription fee is €120 per year (€10 paid every month). However, you may also pay less subscription fees thanks to frequent promotional campaigns. If you are not in a hurry, wait and check the site from time to time. From time to time, you have the opportunity to become a member by paying 99€ or 60€.
23 cents per minute if you get an annual subscription, if you don't 32 You will pay cents. Whether you use it or not, you are charged in advance for the first 20 minutes. So even if you use the car for less than 20 minutes, subscribers will pay 4,66€, non-subscribers 6,33€ they pay. Subsequent minute charges are added to the 20 minutes. Current prices from this link You can learn.
Since Autolib' service is paid by the minute, I recommend you to check whether the roads are blocked or not - if you have the opportunity - on the internet before you decide to use this service. In general, roads are congested between 08:00 and 10:00 in the morning and between 17:00 and 20:00 in the evening. Especially during these hours to the periphery I do not recommend you enter.
Become a member
You can become a member online or by going to stations that provide membership services.
You can become a member online or by going to stations that provide membership services.
If you are going to become a member online, you must wait at least 2 days after filling out the membership form and uploading your documents, and after receiving an e-mail regarding the acceptance of your membership application, you must go to one of the Membership Stations to collect your card.
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| Autolib – Membership Station |
In fact, it is much more logical to apply for membership by going directly to the stations that provide membership services and get the subscription card immediately, but only if you have all the necessary documents with you before going there. So what are these documents:
- your passport
- your driving license
- Since you do not have a French driving license – your “International Driving Permit”. If you are a student at any school in France (you have a student visa) then you can also rent a car with a Turkish driver's license.
- Dikkat: You become a member by talking to the officer online, not by filling out a form at the Membership Station. If you don't know French, don't worry, you can also communicate in English. If you do not know English, then it would be more logical for you to apply for membership online; Of course, you will need someone who speaks a foreign language to help you fill out the forms.
- your french mobile phone It better be. Two different officials I spoke to gave different answers on this issue. One said it definitely had to be a French mobile phone, while the other said a foreign mobile phone could also be valid. If you choose to go to the station that provides membership service and become a member, be sure to mention that your phone line belongs to a foreign country when talking to the officer and ask whether you will receive informational SMS.
- Attention: Only Visa and Mastercard credit cards are accepted.
Whichever method you choose to become a member, you can use Autolib as soon as you receive your card.
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| Autolib – Electric Cars for Rental |
How to get from one place to another?
Make a reservation
Congratulations, you've managed to get your Autolib' card! You are about to make your first reservation :)
If you haven't done so before, install the 'Autolib' application on your phone and log in. If you don't have a smartphone or prefer to make your reservation from your computer this link You can see the map of Autolib' stations by clicking here.
Check that there is an available car at your departure station and an empty seat at your arrival station. If you have both, reserve both the car and the place to park.
What Autolib' users complain about the most is One of the issues is that it is not always easy to find a place to park. Although it is not mandatory to reserve a seat at the station you go to when you make your reservation, I highly recommend that you do so. So when you get in the car, the navigation will already have your destination set and will take you there easily. So you can protect your mental health!
pick up the car
You've made your reservation.
Have your card scanned on the screened board at your departure station.
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| autolib station |
After entering your PIN code, the number of the car given to you will be written on the screen.
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| Autolib – Receiving the Car |
Go to the car andhave your plus read to the outlet;
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| Autolib – Receiving the Car |
When the green light starts flashing...
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| Autolib – Receiving the Car |
…remove the plug from the car and insert it into the socket;
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| Autolib – Receiving the Car |
To open the car door, swipe your card at the reader near the driver's side mirror; The door will open.
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| Autolib – Receiving the Car |
Get in the car and turn the ignition; The car will start and the navigation screen will be activated.
I recommend setting up navigation before taking off because the screen that opens only shows your current location. If you have already booked your destination, click on the “ at the top of the screen.R*By pressing ” you will be able to easily navigate to your destination station.
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| Autolib Memory with Vincent |
driving the car
We apologize to those who intend to drive a Ferrari, Autolib can only go up to 107 km/h. But Paris and Paris banliyöSince you cannot drive outside the speed limits, generally 70, 50, or even 30 km/h. You will pass through roads with speed limits.
We apologize to those who intend to drive a Ferrari, Autolib can only go up to 107 km/h. But Paris and Paris banliyöSince you cannot drive outside the speed limits, generally 70, 50, or even 30 km/h. You will pass through roads with speed limits.
Since Autolib' cars are fully electric, they are all automatic. There is heating but no air conditioning! There is no parking sensor, but since the places you park are wide and long, you can park there very easily. In general, these cars are very simple/bare, leaving nothing inside to break or break. The instrument panel is located in the middle of the car, not on the driver's side. The navigation screen in the middle of the panel is quite large. From there, you can adjust the navigation and radio. There is the usual heating, flashing etc. around the screen. While there are buttons, there is another button with the 'Autolib' icon that you have not seen before. Press it and you can talk to an Autolib representative without any delay and free of charge.
return the car
Welcome to your destination!
If you have reserved your spot in advance, park in front of the place with the blue light.
If you have not reserved your spot in advance, you can park wherever you want with the green light.
Then:
1- Get out of the car and swipe your card into the illuminated socket at the back; the light will start flashing.
2- Plug the socket into the car;
3- Look at your mobile phone. You will immediately receive a message saying your reservation has been completed successfully. Attention: If you leave the car without receiving a message, the credit will continue to work! If the message does not arrive aGet in the car and call the officer and tell him that you did not receive the message.
4- When you receive the message, swipe your card at the reader near the driver's side mirror to lock the car door. That is all!
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| Autolib – Delivering the Car |
Autolib' cars
There are three types of cars you can see and drive at stations:
- BlueCar: the most common type. Grey, chubby, capable of carrying 5 people and having 3 doors, the car that immediately comes to our mind when we say "Autolib". This is probably the Autolib you will drive the most. Sometimes these cars may be dressed up for advertising and so may come in different colours; Don't be surprised :)
- Utilib' 0,9m^3: a modified BlueCar, red in color and without a back seat. If you have friends moving from house to house, it would be better if you use this instead of ordinary BlueCar.
- Utilib' 1,4m^3: the same, but with more space in the boot.
Regardless of the subscription you choose, you can reserve and use any car from these three types. They all have the same price.
3 – Advantages and disadvantages of Autolib
If you live in Paris Driving in Paris You must know the cost and troubles: gasoline is expensive, roads are often congested, most streets are one-way, places where you can park Most of the time it is paid, you can leave your car on the street for a maximum of 2 hours, it is difficult to find a place to park, even if you find a parking space it is difficult to park, Parisian drivers behave aggressively... So, people who have cars in Paris have high expenses and poor mental health :)
Advantages of Autolib
- Gasoline, insurance, car park, repair etc. Your expenses are zero.
- Cars can be rented 7/24.
- You won't be tied to your car. You can use Autolib only when going or only when returning. For example, metroAfter visiting your friends, when you are about to return home late at night, you can rent an Autolib just for the return journey. So you don't need to take your car back to where you first bought it.
- You won't have to look for parking.
- Autolib' is much cheaper than a taxi, especially at night…
Disadvantages of Autolib
- Autolib' service is not cheap enough to use every day. If you need a car every day, then it is best to use your own car.
- Autolib is not a service that will be used all day long. It is useful to use it only when going from one place to another. If you need a car to use all day long then rent-a-car will be more suitable for you.
- There may not always be a car where you want to buy the car. Likewise, there may not always be a free parking space where you want to go. You may encounter this problem more frequently as you move away from the city center.
- Even though Autolib' service is open 7/24, using this service may cost you a lot as the roads will be congested between 07:00-10:00 and 17:00-20:00 and you will waste a lot of time in traffic. In general, I recommend that you do not take a car or taxi at these hours.
- If only the touch screen on the dashboard was as fast as the iPad! Sometimes it becomes unresponsive and freezes. Therefore, turn on the navigation immediately after getting in the car. If it does not work (and you do not want to use it without navigation), you can call the officer and ask for another car to be given to you. If you drive without navigation, it will be a stressful journey, and if you want to change the car, you will waste time.
- If you cannot register with your Turkey phone number, you will not receive a confirmation message stating that your reservation was successful when you return your car. You can also get this confirmation from your Autolib application, but you need to have internet connection for this! Another method: right after parking and plugging in, you can press the button inside the car and ask the attendant. It's not very practical, but it'll do...
- While Autolib' cars are generally clean, the car you rent may not be. If it is unbearably dirty, you can call the attendant and ask for another car. On the other hand, if you have a Premium subscription and the car you get in is a little dirty, for example, there is an empty plastic bottle, you have the opportunity to earn points…
earn points
Those who prefer Autolib' Premium subscription can earn points by signing up for Club Autolib. Points can be earned in three ways:
- If the car you bought is in a dirty condition, clean it and take a before/after photo and send it to Club Autolib. After a few days, 80 points will be added to your account.
- If the car you bought has technical problems (e.g. navigation not working, mirror fallen off, tire flat, etc.), take a photo, write a description and send it to Club Autolib. Each week, 120 points will be given to those who explain the problems in the most detail.
- When you use Autolib' service 12 times in a month, you will automatically earn 120 points.
So what do these points do? It is spent in Club Autolib' Store. In my opinion, “120 minutes free usage” is the best thing you can get with 30 points. But if you prefer to save your points, you can buy pens, bags, glasses, etc. you can buy it. For example, when you clean 18 dirty cars (well done!), the trendy Longchamp bag with 1381 points will be yours :)
Vincent Telptxky
Related Articles:
- Velib' – Bicycles for Rental
Ahmet ÖRE's note:
My French friend Vincent wrote this article in Turkish for us, which I think will interest you, because I have never used Autolib, but Vincent uses it regularly. He is my French-Turkish exchange Since he is my friend, as you can see, his Turkish is very good. He wrote the above text entirely himself; I did not intervene in the text, except for one or two small corrections that we made together, and I cared that the writing was original. I hope you enjoyed reading it too.
Thanks
4 Comments
Hello, it was a very useful article, thank you. It was said that the new driver's licenses had international validity, which I used in all rent a cars without any problems, but Autolib rejected my application, saying that it was necessary to have an international driving license. If I get IDP, will the problem be solved? Also, I now have a residence permit. Will it help? :) Thank you
Hello Ms. Seda,
As you said, Turkish driver's licenses can be used when renting a car in France, but Autolib does not accept them. I only know that there is a privilege for those who are here as students, other than that, student cards are not valid for the recognition of a Turkish driver's license. As you said, an international driver's license is required to rent Autolib. But it doesn't seem worth the effort to me; I do not know.
I wish you happy days.
Hello Mr. Ahmet,
Even though I've never used it and know I probably won't, I enjoyed reading it. I understand that you transferred your own written language to your French friend. It was very enjoyable to read. Well done!
Thank you very, very much.