The Middle East car share operator Ekar has added 100 Chevrolet Spark cars to its fleet of vehicles in the United Arab Emirates, Chevrolet Middle East has announced.
Motorists in Saudi Arabia and the UAE can make use of Ekar, which was founded four years ago back in 2016, to rent vehicles by the month, week, day or even minute with the aid of a proprietary smartphone app.
The company was created with the intention of making its customers’ daily commute easier.
The managing director of commercial operations for General Motors in the Middle East and Africa, Luay Al Shurafa, says that the company is thrilled to see so many Chevrolet Spark cars joining the fleet of the convenient, flexible and modern car share firm.
General Motors is always striving to find innovative solutions to realise its international vision for a world without car crashes, emissions and congestion, and the new partnership is a great way to leverage the advantages of car sharing.
One of those advantages is seen to be a reduction in the amount of unnecessary congestion on the roads of the nation.
The automobile manufacturer did not comment as to whether or not it will be accessing Ekar data as an aspect of the new partnership, as car sharing data can help carmakers by offering a clear example of how and when mobility services are used.
The Chevrolet Spark vehicles are now accessible to Ekar app users across Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah.
The flexible booking structure operated by Ekar means that motorists can book a vehicle with the use of its app and pay literally by the minute.
The CEO and co-founder of Ekar, Vilhelm Hedberg, says that the firm has always had a simple vision of helping to facilitate the commute of users.
It does so by offering a seamless platform to allow users to move around the city at all times without needing to undergo the inconvenience of the long process required by traditional car rental services in the UAE.
The company is thrilled to have the convenient, parking-friendly and practical Chevrolet Spark join the fleet, according to Hedberg.
Hedberg says that the new partnership with Chevrolet will allow Ekar to deliver on its mission of providing a better everyday experience to users, and he believes that the vehicles will soon become one of the fleet’s most popular members.
Ekar was the first car share company to begin operating in the Middle East, and its format has allowed it to carve out a different niche not only from standard car rental firms but also from point-to-point services such as Daimler’s Share Now.
Anyone who owns and drives a motor vehicle, be it a Chevrolet Spark or any other brand, in the UAE is under a legal obligation to be covered by a basic form of third-party car insurance policy.
Car insurance policies can also be purchased in more comprehensive forms to protect against car theft or weather damage.