In Pont-de-Barret, residents rely on a shared Citroën ZX to get around, filling a gap left by public transport. The car’s keys stay behind the bar counter, available from early morning until late at night.
With just one bus a day and no train service, the village’s 660 residents found themselves cut off. Five neighbors, tired of waiting for outside help, decided to act. They set up a simple car-sharing system. Handed down by a grandfather, the car is unlocked with a code and started with a basic anyone can borrow from the bar. Drivers log each trip by hand in a shared notebook, recording kilometers and fuel costs.
“It’s automatic, has a code to start, and even a radio-cassette,” says Xavier Charles, one of the founders. The ZX, once a fancy Paris car, now makes two or three trips a week for its users. For some, it means they no longer need a second car. For others, like Camille Gandioli, it’s the only way to get her children to school. “Normally I cycle, but with kids, that’s impossible,” she told Reporterre. The rules are straightforward: pay 25 cents per kilometer for fuel and upkeep, then write down your journey. Since late 2021, the car has covered more than 30,000 kilometers.
For Christian Deloraine, an 81-year-old retired luthier, the shared Citroën is useful, but impressive. “I have modest means and this car has saved my life,” he says. The arrangement isn’t charity. Each user pays their share, and anyone who needs the car can use it, whether on a rainy day or for a trip to town when their own car is out of action.
The idea has spread beyond Pont-de-Barret. In nearby Crest, locals have organized a similar system with eight cars and over forty users. For many, car sharing offers more than savings or lower emissions: it gives them the freedom to get around, something rural life often makes difficult. The ZX still burns fuel, but sharing means fewer cars overall and spreads the environmental cost of ownership among more people.
Solutions like this are rare in places where rural transport is usually an afterthought. As reported earlier, the struggle to get around isn’t unique to France. Across Europe, as public transport fades outside big cities, people are left to improvise.
Pont-de-Barret’s approach is entirely local. There’s no corporate platform or government funding, and no digital system. Instead, neighbors use a Telegram chat and rely on a willingness to share. The bar, open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., is the hub for the whole operation. The idea has already inspired nearby villages to try their own versions, adapting the model to fit their needs.
Pont-de-Barret shows that when official solutions fall short, communities can find their own way. The shared Citroën ZX is a practical fix built on trust and necessity. In a region where rural needs are often overlooked, the village has found a way to keep moving.
