Solar-powered EV carshare pilot launches in Massachusetts

Residents in four lower-income Massachusetts neighborhoods now have access to a new, low-cost option for running errands or getting to appointments: a shared, solar-powered electric vehicle.

The innovative pilot program, CommunityEV Carshare, launched Monday and offers eligible drivers discounted prices on hourly EV rentals at locations in Boston, Chelsea, Framingham, and Quincy.

Transportation is responsible for 38% of Massachusetts’ greenhouse gas emissions. Replacing gasoline-burning vehicles with electric options is therefore a major part of the state’s strategy for meeting its goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. And progress is being made: The EV market share has grown steadily in recent years, and as of 2025, roughly 3% of the state’s 5.6 million cars were electric or plug-in hybrids.

EV adoption, however, has largely come from higher-income households, said Lizzi Weyant, executive director of the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, a regional planning organization that is spearheading the pilot.

“It’s really about increasing access,” Weyant said. ​“If we are going to make EVs a more first-choice vehicle, we need to make them more accessible to lower-income residents.”

The idea for CommunityEV Carshare was first hatched by two of Weyant’s employees. At the same time that they were brainstorming the possibilities, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center opened up a grant opportunity for projects that aimed to expand access to clean transportation options for historically underserved communities. The EV carshare plan received an award of $1 million to get off the ground.

The result is a network of four cars — three Hyundai Konas and a Kia Niro — provided through Zipcar, the formerly Boston-based company that pioneered the carsharing concept. The vehicles are located in public housing developments in Boston and Chelsea, and sites in downtown Framingham and Quincy.

Each vehicle is paired with a solar-powered charger from EV infrastructure company Beam Global. The portable charging stations include a solar canopy held aloft by a large, curved metal arm. The whole thing looks something like ​“an alien spaceship,” Weyant joked, but the technology has the potential to get more charging capacity deployed more quickly, since it doesn’t require digging trenches, disrupting roads, or going through a grid interconnection process.

“We actually get to understand the impact of bringing something to residents in a faster, more affordable way for our cities and towns,” she said.

To make using the vehicles affordable, Zipcar has agreed to waive its standard $25 application fee and lower the annual membership fee from $90 to $35. Once they’re enrolled, drivers can use the car for an hourly rental rate of $11 on weekdays and $13 on weekends, which includes the cost of insurance and charging. Standard Zipcar fees vary by market, but are generally from $14.50 to $17 per hour.

In Boston and Chelsea, all residents of the public housing complexes where the cars are located are eligible to sign up for the pilot. In Framingham and Quincy, interested drivers must show evidence that they already receive government assistance through programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or MassHealth, the state’s Medicaid program.

The first participants have already enrolled, and the cars hit the road this week. The organizers will be watching closely to see who is driving the EVs, where, and how often, said Scott Nathan, CEO and founder of charger platform company Alwayz, a partner in the project. They’re hoping to learn more about whether there is demand for such service in the targeted communities, what kind of education or messaging is needed to get drivers behind the wheel, and how many miles users drive per trip.

The goal is to gather information that will help expand EV use, boost businesses in the sector, and drive down emissions, Nathan said.

“We think there are long-term benefits to providing greater access,” he said. ​“We think that will grow the market of electric vehicles, and ultimately help reduce impacts on climate change.”