Living in Wiltshire means it is often more essential to have a car but what with petrol, insurance and road tax, running a car is a expensive, especially when it spends most of its time sitting outside going nowhere.

Salisbury's new hOURCAR scheme is complementary to public transport, walking and cycling and the organisers say that joining hOURCARS gives simple, cheap and efficient access to a variety of vehicles close to your home.

hOURCARS is a car club and similar schemes are emerging throughout the UK and are already proving successful in continental Europe and the USA.

hOURCARS is designed for people who do not need to commute to work by car every day and the organisers say that, typically, there will be 10 to 12 members to every hOURCARS vehicle.

hOURCARS is operated by Salisbury Community Cars (SCC), a not-for-profit organisation.

Benji Goehl with Salisbury mayor Bobbie Chettleburgh at the launch of hOURCARS.

Benji Goehl, who is involved with the hOURCARS scheme in Salisbury answers the some typical questions:

Who would benefit from using hOURCARS?

• people who do not currently have a car, but would like to have access to a car for occasional use, perhaps two or three times per week for social or business trips.

• families who run two cars, but who could manage with one car if they had occasional access to a vehicle.

• people who currently run a car and are not doing high mileage, e.g. less than 8,000 miles per year, and could manage without a car if they had access to a vehicle though hOURCARS.

Don't hOURCARS just reduce the number of cars and not the number of journeys?

Most trips by car are local journeys under 5 miles. When you own a car the majority of your costs are fixed and petrol costs form a low percentage of your overall costs. Therefore, especially with the car parked right outside the door, the temptation is to use the car for journeys that could be made by public transport, walking or cycling.

Users of hOURCARS will have low overheads and pay the full cost of car use each time they use the car. Therefore the temptation to use a car unnecessarily for short journeys is removed.

On average in Europe one Car Club car replaces five privately owned cars, and members cut down their overall travel, reducing their journeys by car by 50%.

Will I be able to use a vehicle for longer periods, e.g. to go on holiday?

We are planning to negotiate a special rate with a local car rental firm for members who want to book cars for a longer hire period, so that hOURCARS are still available for short-term use.

Can hOURCARS provide a range of cars to choose from, for example estate cars and vans ?

This will depend on the number of members subscribing to hOURCARS in Salisbury. As the organisation grows we should be able to offer a greater choice, as the continental Car Clubs do.

How does the insurance work?

Currently, all vehicles operating within hOURCARS are privately owned. Members will be added as a named driver to the individual insurance policy, or be covered by an any driver policy.

Membership is currently only available to people with a fairly clean driving license that are between 25 and 75 years old.

What happens if I have an accident in the car?

You will be made aware of the procedure on how to report any accidental damage. Each member should check the car at the start of every hire period, making sure that any damage to the car has been reported. You must inform the police if you are involved in anything other than a minor accident, or if anyone is injured.

What happens if the car breaks down ?

All hOURCARS have full breakdown cover.

I will need to have child seats for the car; will they be available?

hOURCARS will make provisions for child and baby seats to be available on request.

• Find out more about hOURCARS by visiting their website.

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