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About The Clackamas print. (Oregon City, Oregon) 1989-2019 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 22, 2017)
Drive Mercedes for cents STORY AND PHOTO BY COLLIN BEREND '"ars are e x p e n s iv e and require much maintenance depending on how old they are. Sometim es finding a spot to park in Portland is expensive. That’ s w here carago comes in. Carago, w ith 2.3 million members, is currently the largest car sharing company in the w orld. For m em bership, th ey require your license number and credit card information. With your smartphone, you can tracka car and unlock it, renting it until you end the trip. You’re charged by the minute. Currently, the Smart Fortwo costs 41 cents per minute. So, depending on how long you think you’ll be driving, that’ s not bad. For me, it’ s cheaper than Uber. I drive to Portland at least once a month. I can take a car from Sellwood and get to Portland State w ith only a cost of $9-11 on average. “W ith carago, members can enjoy the freedom of car ownership w ithout the associated costs and responsibilities o f ownership,” said Dacyl Armendariz, the communications manager for carago in an email. The Smart Fortwo has only two seats and a trunk for your basic needs, not best for large trips to the grocery store. But they do have some cars that have bike racks, so if you need one and your tire’ s popped, w ell, now you have a ride. W hat if you don’ t w ant a Smart car? Maybe you want som ething th at’ s more sophistiqué. Then use your p hone to locate and ren t a new 2017 M ercedes- Benz. There are only two types, the GLA and the CLA. The 2017 MércedesvBenz CLA is a four- door sedan. It’ s slick, comfortable, new and has seat heaters to toast those buns. For a sedan, it’ s spacy, and looks fancy. Since it’ s new, be sure to learn how it works first. Then there’s the M ercedes-Benz GLA, which is a compact SUV. Compared to the CLA, the room isn’t that much different, except for the trunk, which is bigger. And yes, it also has bum warmers. Three Level settings, for those curious. Both cars allow you to hook your phone • up and listen to music, make calls, use p erso n a l n av ig a tio n w ith p revio u s locations you’ve mapped and more. The control is all at the steering wheel. But how much are they? Both M ercedes-Benz vehicles can be rented at the sam e rate as thé Sm art Fortwo, a m ere 41 cents per minute. “ Carago is a great option for anyone w ith m obility needs, and w e see th at reflected in our wide range of members,” said A rm endariz. “ In Portlan d, th e m ajority o f our m em bers are betw een 25-35 yeàrs old and are split evenly male/ fem ale.” To use a carago rental, you m ust be w ithin the home area, a highlighted part of the map. Outside of the home area is w here the map is hazed by w hite. You can drive outside the home area, but you canrtot park or end the trip outside of it. There are carago parking spaces outside o f hom e areas, such as at Portland International A irport and som é areas which have small home areas. Portland Community College is one of them. With carago, m eter parking is free of charge w ith the caveat being it must be a two hour or more spot, if you’re done renting. You risk it being towed otherwise, and you’ll be responsible. “We would like to meet with Clackamas Community College to see if they would allow carago parking in their lo t,” said Arm endariz. “ W e would also need to develop a forecast of how often our service would be used at the campus. “ Carago provides students w ith a cost effective, flexible transportation option. For just [41] cents per minute - completely free from surge pricing - students have access to our fleet of smart cars, Mercedes GLA, and CLA vehicles including fuel, parking, insurance and m aintenance,” said Armendariz w hen asked about how it would benefit students. "... enjoy the freedom o f car ownership w ithout the associated costs. . . " - Dacyl Armendariz For many students and staff, the use of a carago would be most useful. What if your car is in the shop, you don’t have one or a shared car is being used? Being able to drive a carago anywhere from Portland to Oregon City would be a benefit. And this is w hy Oregon City and Clackamas Community College should become home areas. o © PRINT EDITORIAL Co Editors-in-Chief Blake Swan Victoria Tinker chiefed@clackamas.edu Copy Editor Kristen Wohlers copyed@clackamas.edu Photo Editor Austin Boltz photoed@clackamas.edu News Editor Elizabeth Kessel newsed@clackamas.edu Arts & Culture Editor Merari Calderon Ruiz aced@clackamas.edu Sports Editor Travis David V Whittaker sportsed@clackamas.edu Opinion Editor Collin Berend oped@clackamas.edu Web Editor Alexis Wagar webeditor@clackamas.edu Design Editor Chelsea Pagan Ad Manager David Avis admgr@clackamas.edu STAFF WRITERS & PHOTOGRAPHERS Nick Allison Doug Fry Marjorie Guttery James Harley Tim Vixay Sam Weston PRODUCTION Ian VanOrden Jacob Buswell JOURNALISM ADVISER Melissa Jones mehssaj@clackamas.edu The Clackamas Print aims to report the news in an honest, unbiased and professional manner. Content published in The Print is not screened or subjects0 censorship. A Smart Fortwo waits for a new driver. ON THE COVER: Photos by Alexis Wagar, Collin Berend, Doug Fry, and Sam Weston. Cover design by Chelsea Pagan. CORRECTION: In the Feb. 15 issue o f the Clackamas Print, Katie Kammerer’s name was misspelled. The Print regrets the error. Most Trafficked Story This Week: Ten ways to reduce stress by Kristen Wohlers 2 Clackamas Print FEBRUARY 22,2017 thedackamasprint.com CLACKAMAS The Clackamas P rin t is free, b u t please ta ke only, one:; copy. A n y person .. - rem oving ou r papers in b u lk wit! be pro s ecu te d to th e fu ll e xten t o f the law. Email comments, concerns or tips to: chiefed@clackaihas.edu or call us at 503-594-6266 L Roger Rook Room 135 19600 Molalla Ave. Oregon City, OR 97045
