Autolib'

Autolib'

Company type	Electric car sharing service
Industry	Carsharing, Electric vehicles
Founded	December 2011
Founder	Bolloré
Defunct	31 July 2018
Fate	Discontinued; succeeded by Mobilib' program
Headquarters	Paris , France
Area served	Paris metropolitan area, Lyon, Bordeaux, London, Indianapolis, Turin, Singapore
Key people	Vincent Bolloré (chairman of Bolloré group)
Products	Electric car sharing using Bolloré Bluecar vehicles
Owner	Bolloré Group

Autolib' () was an electric car sharing initiative introduced in Paris, France, in December 2011 and discontinued on 31 July 2018. Managed by Bolloré, it served as a complement to the city's existing bike sharing network, Vélib', which began in 2007. Autolib' operated a fleet composed entirely of electric Bolloré Bluecar vehicles accessible through paid subscriptions, supported by an extensive urban network of parking spaces and charging station infrastructure. As of July 2016, the service counted 3,980 Bluecars registered to over 126,900 subscribers and maintained 1,084 electric car stations within the Paris metropolitan area, equipped with 5,935 charging points.

After its initial rollout in Paris, Autolib' extended its operations to Lyon and Bordeaux. Additionally, Bolloré secured contracts to manage Autolib' franchises in London and Indianapolis during 2015, followed by expansions into Turin in 2016 and Singapore in 2017.

History

Following the success of Paris’s Vélib' bike sharing program launched in 2007, the Autolib' system was introduced. The electric vehicles were produced by the industrial group Bolloré in partnership with the Italian automaker Pininfarina. Plans were made to unify payment systems for bike and car rentals alongside public transportation ticketing. In May 2012, Vincent Bolloré, chairman of Bolloré group, forecasted that Autolib' would become profitable by 2018; however, the service ultimately concluded on 31 July 2018. It was succeeded on 2 December 2018 by a municipal authority overseeing approximately 1,000 charging stations and coordinating agreements with various carsharing companies under the new Mobilib' program.

The construction of Autolib' stations commenced in mid-2011, initially deploying a trial fleet of 66 Bolloré Bluecars during a two-month test period from October to December 2011. The full launch occurred on 5 December 2011 with a starting fleet of 250 Bluecars and an equal number of rental stations servicing Paris and eighteen neighboring municipalities (which expanded to ninety-six by 2016), all operating under the "Autolib' Métropole" consortium.

At launch, vehicle availability was constrained due to subscription numbers exceeding expectations. By January 2012, up to forty cars had been temporarily removed from circulation for repairs caused by vandalism or technical issues.

By July 2012, the network had grown to include 650 parking and charging station locations across Paris and forty-six participating communes; this expanded further to approximately 4,000 charging points by February 2013. The user base increased from an initial 6,000 subscribers in December 2011 to 27,000 by July 2012 and reached nearly 37,000 by October that year, including around 13,000 annual subscribers.

In terms of market presence during 2012, the Bolloré Bluecar led electric vehicle sales in France with registrations totaling 1,543 units—accounting for roughly 28% of all-electric cars sold nationwide. By September 2013, over 2,000 Bluecars were registered specifically for Autolib'. By late September 2012, the fleet had surpassed half a million rentals with cumulative mileage reaching significant levels by February of the following year. By October 2013, total rentals exceeded three million trips at an average daily usage rate of approximately 10,000. By July 2014, Autolib' operated a fleet of around 2,500 vehicles serving over 150,000 subscribers with total distance traveled surpassing . The service terminated operations in July 2018; some vehicles from the fleet remain stored near Romorantin-Lanthenay.

Trademark dispute

In December 2009, the car rental firm Europcar initiated legal action against the City of Paris, alleging that the name Autolib' infringed upon its trademark for the "Autoliberté" car rental subscription service, which had been in operation since 2001. The Paris High Court dismissed the lawsuit in March 2011; however, Europcar filed an appeal. On 30 June 2012, the Paris Court of Appeal determined that Autolib' violated trademark regulations and mandated a name change within one month. This ruling impacted all related assets, including 1,800 vehicles, charging stations, subscriber cards, and promotional materials.

Subsequent to the verdict, negotiations between the City of Paris and Europcar ensued to settle the branding dispute. By November 2012, both parties reached an agreement allowing the continued use of the Autolib' name. Europcar agreed to forgo enforcement actions in return for ownership rights of the brand by the City of Paris and complimentary advertising for its Autoliberté service. This arrangement was established for a three-year duration.

Incidents involving fires

On 14 October 2013, a Bluecar caught fire while charging at an Autolib' station in Paris, which then spread to a second Bluecar. Authorities launched a police investigation following the event. Bolloré reported that their real-time telemetric monitoring system did not identify any battery thermal runaway and attributed the fire to external causes, most likely vandalism. Since the program's launch, 25 Bluecars have been destroyed by fire, predominantly due to acts of vandalism.

Expansion of Autolib' outside Paris

At the start of 2013, Bolloré revealed intentions to extend its car-sharing services to Lyon and Bordeaux under distinct brand identities. The company committed to financing infrastructure development, vehicle procurement, maintenance, and repairs without imposing costs on these municipalities. Additionally, Bolloré expressed interest in entering Asian markets. In October 2013, plans surfaced for Scootlib', an electric scooter-sharing initiative designed to complement existing services such as Vélib' and Autolib'.

The Lyon-based service, BlueLy, commenced operations in October 2013 featuring 130 vehicles and 51 stations. Bordeaux launched BlueCub in January 2014 with a fleet of 90 cars supported by 40 parking stations and 180 charging points.

In June 2013, Autolib' collaborated with Indianapolis to establish BlueIndy, an electric car-sharing system that officially began service in September 2015. A London operation was announced in 2014 and inaugurated in March 2015 utilizing pre-existing charging infrastructure; this service aimed for a fleet size of 3,000 electric vehicles by 2018.

Bolloré signed agreements in June 2016 with Singapore’s Land Transport Authority and Economic Development Board to introduce BlueSG. The service launched in December 2017 with an initial network of 30 charging stations and 80 vehicles nationwide. Plans included expanding to 2,000 charging points across 500 locations and deploying a fleet of 1,000 electric cars by 2020.

BlueTorino debuted in Turin, Italy, in October 2016. Presently operating with 130 cars and 54 charging stations, it targets growth to a fleet of 330 vehicles supported by 80 stations throughout the city.

Service operation

The Autolib' Bluecar was accessible to individuals aged eighteen or older possessing either a valid French driving license or a recognized foreign license accompanied by an international driving permit who subscribed to the program. Two rental plans were available with half-hour usage fees ranging from to , depending on the selected package. Vehicles could be collected from and returned to any rental station within the network. Each car was equipped with onboard GPS technology and monitored continuously by a centralized operations center.

In addition to subscription charges, users paid a variable fee per half-hour segment calculated on a pro rata basis rounded to the nearest minute (with a minimum charge applied for the first twenty minutes). The following table outlines membership categories, associated fees, and half-hour rates:

Autolib' subscription plans and usage fees

Plan	Membership duration	Subscription cost	Vehicle reservation fee	Half-hour rate	Maximum accident liability fees
					First incident	Second incident	Third incident (maximum)
Annual plan	1 year	Template:Euro annually (Template:Euro monthly)	Template:Euro	Template:Euro	Template:Euro	Template:Euro	Template:Euro
Pay-as-you-go	1 year	Template:Euro annually (Template:Euro monthly)	Template:Euro	Template:Euro	Template:Euro	Template:Euro	Template:Euro

Private charging for electric vehicles

Beyond managing its own fleet, Autolib' extended charging facilities to private owners of electric cars and motorcycles. Subscribers opting for the annual "recharge" plan paid a fee during their first year. These subscribers were allocated specific parking spots at stations, identified by blue square markings. The charging rate was set per hour, with a daily usage cap of two sessions per subscriber.

In early 2014, Renault provided complimentary Autolib' charging subscriptions to its electric vehicle customers. The Autolib' infrastructure accommodated a variety of plug-in models, including the BMW i3, Nissan Leaf, Mitsubishi i-MiEV, Opel Ampera, multiple Renault Z.E. variants, Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid, as well as all Smart ED, Peugeot iOn, and Citroen C-Zero units produced before May 2013.

Bluecar leasing and retail sales

Starting in October 2012, Bolloré introduced Bluecar leasing options for both individual users and corporate clients at a monthly rate of €500 (approximately USD 648). This package included insurance coverage, parking privileges, and access to charging stations within the Autolib' network. Additionally, each station provided a dedicated recharging spot for privately owned electric vehicles outside the Autolib' service. The commercially sold Bluecar featured a distinctive blue paint finish in contrast to the silver unpainted aluminum body of the Autolib' fleet models. By February 2013, Bolloré began offering Bluecars for direct purchase, with an optional subscription costing €15 monthly that granted entry to the Autolib' charging system throughout Paris.

Corporate carsharing initiatives

In December 2012, Atos partnered with Bolloré Group to initiate the MyCar corporate carsharing pilot program at Atos’s Bezons headquarters. The initial fleet comprised ten Bolloré Bluecars branded with Atos logos, powered onsite through solar panel installations and supported by connectivity to the broader Autolib' network across Paris and neighboring regions.

A similar arrangement was established in January 2013 with Crédit Agricole, France’s largest retail banking institution, which leased five Bluecars for a duration of 20 months to facilitate employee travel related to business activities.

See also

• BlueSG, Singapore-based electric vehicle sharing service
• Car2Go, global carsharing platform featuring electric rentals
• Communauto, Montreal’s electric and hybrid vehicle sharing system
• Kandi EV CarShare, electric carsharing program in Hangzhou, China
• Plug-in electric vehicles in France