“Quebec is the cradle of modern carsharing in North America. Thus, it is entirely appropriate – and we are very proud of this – that Montreal should be the place where we will meet to exchange ideas on our progress so far and to provide more momentum to this industry which is based on social responsibility and ethics”, said Mr. Benoît Robert, CEO of Communauto.

To enrich this exchange of ideas, Communauto has invited three renowned personalities in the field of sustainable transportation in Europe: Mr. Ronald Ries, the French Senator of Bas-Rhin, former Mayor of Strasbourg and promoter of the French law on carsharing, Mr. Pascal Smet, Minister of Mobility and Public Works in the Brussels-Capital region and Mr. Peter Muheim, president of Mobility CarSharing (Switzerland), the largest carsharing organization in Europe.

Work sessions will take place in the offices of Montreal’s Agence Métropolitaine de Transport and those of SITQ, both partners of the event. These meetings will take place at he same time as the 2007 MUTA-Autovision Forum (Urban Mobility and Advanced Transportation) in Mont-Tremblant, which was organized by the Centre d'expérimentation des véhicules électriques du Québec (CEVEQ). Several of Communauto’s guest speakers will also participate in the workshop discussions on the fifth theme of this Forum, which is carsharing (see www.muta2007.com)

The week’s schedule includes a meeting on Thursday, October 4 at 5:00 PM with the City of Montreal, as represented by Mr. André Lavallée, member of the executive council and head of public transportation and urban development.

On Friday, October 5, stakeholders in the fields of transportation and the environment, along with many of Communauto’s partners, will have the opportunity to meet Mr. Ries and Mr. Smet and to exchange ideas with the delegates present during a breakfast conference held in their honour at the Intercontinental Hotel.

Communauto is the oldest carsharing company in North America. It now has over 13,000 members who share a fleet of over 700 self-serve vehicles. Communauto’s mission is to offer a convenient, economical and eco-friendly alternative to owning a car.