Having trouble finding a Communautocar in Montreal this summer? You're not alone

Evelyne Morisette has been using the Communautocar-sharing service in Montreal for more than10 years, but she says she's never had as much trouble finding a carthan she has this summer.

"Especially on the weekend when you're looking for a Flex, it's usually really hard to get there," she said,referring to the model of cars that can be picked up and dropped off anywhere in the city that is part ofCommunautoFlex zone.

Morisette, the creator of the Spotted: Communauto Facebook page, says the cars usually tend to be available at the extremities of the island, like in the Pointe-aux-Trembles orAhuntsicneighbourhoods.

InHochelaga-Maisonneuve, where she lives, they're scarce, "so when you see a Flex, you take it," she said.

Marco Viviani,vice-president of strategic developmentatCommunauto, says the company is facing a shortage of cars this year.

Despite ordering an additional 1,300 vehicles,Communauto says it's only been able to add about 500 in Montreal since the beginning of the yeara 15 per centincrease and 100 in the rest of Quebec.The additions bring the company's current Montreal total to about 4,000 and the province's to 4,500.

"The availability of vehicles is a major concern for people,"Vivianisaid, saying the fleet falls short of what is needed to meet the growing demand.

According to Viviani, post-pandemic effects and the less lucrative nature of commercial fleets for manufacturers have limited the number of available cars.

Canada's market is also small compared to the U.S., which affects the number of vehicles available in the country.

WATCH|Communauto's Montreal service expands:

More Communauto cars are coming to Montreal

5 months ago

Duration 2:10

The car-sharing fleet in the city is getting 1,100 new vehicles and more areas outside central Montreal are getting access this year.

In April,Communautoannounced it wasexpanding its service, adding more than 1,100 cars to its fleet and making some of themavailable in neighbourhoods well outside the downtown core, including Lachine, Rivire-des-Prairies and Bois-Franc.

Vivianisaid the company's delayed vehicle orderwill surely affect this plan, but it still expects toexpand gradually in the new neighbourhoods so asto limit the impact on the current network.

Nevertheless, he said it's important that users understandthat Communautois complementary to other transit options on the island of Montreal.

"Car-sharing is a part of a multi-model system and sometimes you take a BIXI or you take a cab [to get to one], and this is the way that it can work," he said.