Households in Botley are being asked if they want to start a car club, which aims to slash the cost of motoring and reduce the number of cars parked in the street.

Community leaders in North Hinksey, which covers Botley, are looking for residents who are priced out of the car market, or struggling to meet the cost of their second car, to sign up.

The plans come after a car-sharing scheme launched in East Oxford last November attracted 64 members in its first six weeks of operation and has proved to be a huge success.

Prof Graham Parkhurst, chairman of the highways sub-committee at North Hinksey Parish Council, is looking for 30 members to join a scheme that would see members charged a one-off registration fee, to be decided, and then pay about £5 an hour to rent the car.

The not-for-profit organisation Carplus reported that motorists with an annual mileage of less then 6,000 miles could save up to £3,500 a year by taking part in such a scheme.

And Prof Parkhurst believes the scheme will also benefit people who will live in new apartments planned for the area, which are being designed as car-free developments.

Prof Parkhurst, a professor of sustainable mobility at the University of the West of England in Bristol, said: “We are looking for people to express an interest in the scheme at this stage. If you need a car this would be the cheapest way to have access to one.

“If you buy your own car you suffer the costs of depreciation, you have to buy insurance, you have got to buy car tax and you pay it whether you use the car or not.

“People who belong to a car club don’t face these fixed costs, so they are more likely to choose the most efficient method of getting around.”

Prof Parkhurst, who lives in North Hinksey Lane, added: “Bus fares don’t look as expensive if you haven’t already spent so much money on a car.”

Neighbour Ans Laver, who owns a Nissan Micra, said: “I would join this scheme and it means I would be able to get rid of my car.

“I know I don’t do enough miles to warrant my own car and I would like to be a bit greener by taking away the temptation of using it all the time. This means I would only use a car when I really need it.”

Anyone interested in joining the scheme should contact g_parkhurst@onetel.com or jenny.sprout@btinternet.com cwalker@oxfordmail.co.uk