In a new trial in Finland, Turku City Library is launching a new experiment allowing citizens to borrow an electric vehicle (EV) with their library card.
The campaign is being run by Toyota and creative agency The&Partnership Nordics to offer mobility opportunities to the citizens of Turku, Finland, in a three-week trial operating from May 8 through May 28.
The goal is twofold: introduce citizens to electrification; and increase consumers' mobility options outside of traditional methods. Additionally, the companies are looking at ways to lower the threshold to adopt EVs and using the library is a way to give everyone easy access.
The companies said while the experiment just launched last week, nearly all the slots were booked in half an hour when the campaign went live.
First library-borrowed EV
Why a library? The companies said the reasons include:
- Ease of accessibility
- Increases citizen’s technology knowledge
- Libraries famously bring new tech to the public
Libraries in general adopt technology that is then lent to the citizens of their cities. Adding internet allowed many to access it for the first time.
Turku City Library has added numerous technological experiments in recent years such as the first electric library bus. Adding EVs to the lending system was a natural fit, the companies said. It also helps the library’s plans to be carbon neutral by 2029.
“We don't want to live in a world where advanced technology is only accessible to a few,” said Mikko Kekäläinen, director of Toyota Finland. “Free movement is our core value, and in today's powertrain discussion, we want to offer different options to make our common goal possible for everyone.”
