Andrew Taylor, chairman and CEO of Enterprise Holdings, which owns and operates the Alamo Rent A Car, National Car Rental and Enterprise Rent-A-Car brand in North America, addressed the Corporate Eco Forum Annual Meeting in New York, saying that, when it comes to the future viability of the passenger vehicle and its ability to meet the public's local mobility needs, consumers and the marketplace will determine success or failure.

As an example of the challenges that new alternative fuel and power sources face, Taylor pointed to his company's attempt several years ago at advancing E85 fuel adoption by shifting nearly 30 percent of its fleet to E85-capable vehicles. “Unfortunately, the program saw little response from customers and ultimately failed," he said, in part because of the limited number of E85 fueling stations. But he also expressed Enterprise's commitment to help meet mobility challenges, with a worldwide network that includes more than 7,700 neighborhood and airport locations, with 6,000 branch offices located within 15 miles of 90 percent of the U.S. population.

He noted that one of the local mobility solutions Enterprise is soon bringing to the market is its Driving Futures Network -- car rental branches that will offer customers an expanded fleet of electric vehicles and hybrids in more than 30 markets across the country. Taylor also noted in his remarks that hourly car-sharing has a role to play in the urban mobility equation. In addition, Enterprise Holdings is investing heavily in alternative vehicle and fuel technology through its support of renewable fuels research. Since 2006, Enterprise's owners, the Taylor family, have given $35 million to the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center and its Enterprise Rent-A-Car Institute for Renewable Fuels.