Kyoto to launch car-sharing service using fuel-cell vehicles

Japan's ancient capital will be the first local authority in the country to start such a service, city government officials said. The western Japan city is scheduled to buy three Mirai cars, which Toyota Motor Corp. launched in December as the world's first hydrogen-powered cars on the mass market, according to the officials. Users will be able to rent the cars by the hour after making reservations online. As part of efforts to promote the service, the city government is considering using the cars during festivals and disaster drills, as well as calling for the establishment of hydrogen fuel stations in the city. Yukio Furui, the senior city official in charge of energy policy, said he wants to make efforts to create "a hydrogen energy society." Fuel-cell vehicles run on electricity generated through a chemical reaction between hydrogen fuel and oxygen in the air. Source: Kyodo