Toyota, in co-operation with BTC and AV Living Lab, presents a new form of mobility – the pilot project DriveMe. Toyota DriveMe is an “in-house” vehicle co-sharing and modern fleet-management service. During the first phase, the vehicle co-sharing service will be offered to more than 30 partners with a total of over 1000 employees in the BTC City Ljubljana area as an “in-house” vehicle co-sharing service. With Toyota and Lexus hybrid vehicles, the service promotes greener and more efficient use of transportation based on shared economy rather than ownership. It provides users with reduced costs, secure parking and a smarter way of monitoring and optimising the use.

In the field of mobility, we are witnessing rapid and radical changes brought about by new forms of mobility. At the same time, a number of challenges known also to the partners of the pilot project are introduced.

Toyota as the world’s leading automotive brand is undergoing a transformation from a car manufacturer to an all-round mobility provider. The company is committed to seeking new forms of mobility with the aim of improving the quality of life of current and future generations. Toyota Slovenija shares this goal with BTC, which in the scope of Mission: Green strives to focus on energy efficiency, water conservation, waste management, social responsibility, innovativeness and sustainable mobility. With more than 21 million visitors and 12 million vehicles a year visiting BTC City Ljubljana, BTC finds it important to seek new mobility solutions. In addition, AV Living Lab is upgrading the concept of a living laboratory in the BTC City Ljubljana area and is building a partner ecosystem with the aim of transforming mobility. In the pilot project DriveMe, it co-creates new business models and forms of mobility, and thus represents an indispensable partner in the development of the project.

Together, Toyota, BTC and AV Living Lab partners have created the Toyota DriveMe pilot project – vehicle co-sharing and innovative fleet-management – providing companies with a smarter way of monitoring and optimising vehicle use and its total costs. Toyota provides the service with the latest hybrid models of Toyota vehicles and the prestigious Lexus brand, allowing users to choose the right vehicle for any occasion. Likewise, with hybrid vehicles, the service promotes a more environmentally friendly and efficient use of transportation based on shared economy rather than ownership. This enables users to reduce costs and experience a one-of-a-kind upcoming mobility concept.

In the first phase, the vehicle co-sharing service will be offered to more than 30 partners with a total of over 1000 employees in the BTC City Ljubljana area as an “in-house” vehicle co-sharing service. This includes easy booking with no unnecessary paperwork. The development of the service has taken into account market needs, e.g., ease of use, security and cost predictability, thus fuel, registration, insurance, maintenance and 24-hour assistance are already included in the cost.

During this stage, the pilot project will also serve as a learning platform, enabling the new mobility solution to be tested well, to be improved by taking into account the feedback of service users and subsequently to be expanded with the aim of satisfying user needs.

In the pilot period, the new Toyota DriveMe mobility solution will be used to test business model and enhance customer experience, allowing it to expand to other locations and markets.

Introducing Toyota DriveMe, CEO of Toyota Adria, Kensuke Tsuchiya, emphasised the commitment “mobility for all”: “Most people know us as a car manufacturer, but today we are focusing on a new vision of Toyota, a vision realising mobility for all. We strive to achieve the aims of a mobility-focused society and to find new forms of mobility in response to different user needs. As a result, today we are introducing a new form of mobility – Toyota DriveMe. Toyota is aware of the diverse user needs, which include not only conventional vehicle ownership but also the growing need for co-sharing, e.g., sharing cars that people only use when they need them. I am glad that we are one of the first in the automotive branch to introduce this kind of service on Slovenian soil. I am even more excited to be co-creating this new form of mobility in partnership with BTC and AV Living Lab.”

Miha Mermal, Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Sustainability Officer at BTC, emphasised the company’s sustainability focus: “For more than 15 years, BTC has systematically been engaged in sustainable development within Mission: Green, which also places significant emphasis on sustainable mobility. We always enter projects with partners and offer them the BTC City area as an ideal environment for testing and implementing modern solutions. I believe that the findings of the DriveMe pilot project co-created with Toyota Adria and AV Living Lab will also contribute to the introduction of Toyota’s “in-house” vehicle co-sharing in other locations and markets. DriveMe is seen as a form of mobility that builds on the existing business models of shared economy in BTC City Ljubljana. It brings new services to business tenants while reducing the need for parking spaces.”

Toyota DriveMe project manager, Gašper Picelj, is pleased and happy to see the launch of the new mobility solution: “We are very pleased to have introduced the car co-sharing project to the market in six months. We are one of the first car dealers, if not the only one, to introduce the service in this form on the Slovenian market. New mobility is one of Toyota Adria’s priorities for the coming years, thus we boldly look forward to the future.”

Daniel Avdagič, Managing Director of AV Living Lab, emphasised that the Toyota DriveMe solution is a product of Slovenian knowledge: “AV Living Lab has been setting milestones in mobility since its foundation. Last year, we established the Slovenian ecosystem for autonomous vehicle testing with our partners and were the first to bring an autonomous vehicle to Slovenia. This year, we organised an international conference where we searched for new business models that would keep us busy when we no longer have to hold the wheel. AV Living Lab aims to create new business models in the field of mobility. Thus, we are proud to be involved in the development of Toyota’s new DriveMe service, the first “in-house” vehicle co-sharing solution in the region. The business model is a product of Slovenian knowledge, and following the pilot project in Slovenia, everything is ready for expansion to other markets.”