On October 15, 2026, HOURCAR, the Twin Cities nonprofit carsharing service that also operates the all-electric Evie Carshare, ended operations after 21 years. The nonprofit announced the closure on October 8, sharing it could not close a $625,000 funding gap after facing federal funding clawbacks and cuts, constrained philanthropic and public funding support, and sharply rising operating costs. As a result of these challenges, its Board voted to dissolve the organization.
Carsharing is one of the most powerful tools to support Minnesotans who can’t afford to own their own car. In 2025 alone, Evie saved its users an estimated $14.2 million. As HOURCAR’s service ends, its users — 42 percent of which identify as Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), and 46 percent of which identify as low-income — must now find an alternative to get to work, access healthcare and childcare, and purchase groceries.
HOURCAR launched in Minneapolis and St. Paul in 2005, and Evie followed in 2022. Together, they offered both hub-based round trips and one-way, by-the-minute trips in a fleet that was nearly 90 percent electric by trip count. The service helped lower Minnesota’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from its transportation sector — the largest source of emissions in the state – while also bridging a common gap in exposure to and use of electric vehicles (EVs) among under-served communities.
Fresh Energy strongly supported HOURCAR and its EV fleet for the accessible, equitable, and clean transportation service it provided to Minnesotans. HOURCAR was uniquely successful in reaching new communities not typically found among current EV owners, a major reason Fresh Energy supported HOURCAR through regulatory advocacy at the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission.
“In its 21 years of operation, first as a small roundtrip gasoline carshare organization and then as operator of one of the largest electric vehicle one-way carshare fleets in the country, HOURCAR helped many Minnesotans save money while connecting them to where they needed to go, all the while improving our air quality and reducing our climate emissions,” said Anjali Bains, managing director of transportation at Fresh Energy and long-time HOURCAR board member. “Thanks to the support from many partners and a truly dedicated staff, HOURCAR became an essential service for many community members — a service that is still very much needed, even as HOURCAR ends its operations.
While this chapter is sadly closing, I and many others in the transportation advocacy community will continue to support HOURCAR’s vision of climate-friendly and accessible electric carshare here in the Twin Cities and beyond, given its absolutely central role in supporting an equitable and affordable electric transition in our state.”
Auto insurance costs rose precipitously in 2025, making up nearly a quarter of HOURCAR’s budget. Coupled with federal funding being disrupted across services and sectors, which strained the budgets of philanthropic funders and public funding, this challenging situation led to HOURCAR’s Board of Directors voting to close HOURCAR last week. The Board shared more about what led to this decision in a recent blog post shared on HOURCAR’s website.
Fresh Energy and its partners will continue to advocate for clean and affordable transportation options that work for all Minnesotans, including those without their own vehicles and in communities that have long been underserved. Because the federal government has cut support for this critical service, state, regional, and utility partners and leaders must act to ensure the viability of programs like Evie that address the increasing strain on household budgets. EV carshare that integrates with public and active transportation is the model of equitable and accessible clean transportation that will get us to a just, prosperous, and resilient future here in Minnesota.