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🇫🇷 Paris

Autolib' Electric Car-Sharing

🤖 AI-generated summary of the sources below · 🔎 Last verified · ◆ 9 sourced claims, none individually verified yet

This overview was generated with AI from the public sources listed below and checked against them before publication. It has not had a complete human fact-check — treat it as a starting point and follow the sources.

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✎ Updated 26 Aug 2026 3 sources added. What changed →

Launched 5 December 2011 by the Bolloré Group, Autolib' was one of the world's first large all-electric, one-way car-share schemes, growing to roughly 4,000 Bluecars across about 1,080 stations in Paris and a hundred-odd suburban municipalities, with around 150,000 subscribers. The concession put the first 60 million euros of losses on the operator and the rest on the municipalities in proportion to the stations on their territory. In 2018 the operator notified the syndicate that the concession no longer made economic sense and asked for 233.7 million euros; Bolloré put the projected deficit to 2023 at about 293 million euros, a figure the city of Paris disputed. The Autolib' Vélib' Métropole syndicate refused, terminated the contract on 25 June 2018 and the cars were withdrawn on 31 July. Bolloré sued, lost at first instance in 2023, and won on appeal.

Completed 📅 2011–2018
Outcome🪦 Failed
Evidence📊 Independent
what does this mean?The strongest source is an independent non-academic evaluation: an audit office, a government or EU review, or an NGO. It grades who did the looking — not how well the project went. All four grades →
Run byBolloré Group (concession from the Autolib' Vélib' Métropole syndicate)
Scale🗺️ Regional

📊 Impact

On 21 February 2025 the Paris administrative court of appeal ordered the syndicate to pay Autolib' just over 66 million euros plus interest — far below the 233.7 million demanded, and seven years after the cars were withdrawn. The bill is split between 98 municipalities by station count: Paris carries its 700 former stations and 97 outer-ring towns share the remaining 400.

🎓 Lesson

Refusing to pay is not the same as not paying. The syndicate rejected the operator's demand and cancelled five years early, which read at the time as a public authority holding the line against a failing concession — but the contract itself put losses above 60 million euros on the municipalities in proportion to their stations, and an appeal court eventually said so too. The failure was never technical; the cars worked. It was a question of who had agreed, in 2011, to carry the downside, and the answer took until 2025 to arrive.

🚲 MobilityShared mobilityEV & charging

Sources

↗ Autolib' — Wikipedia archived copyLaunch 5 Dec 2011 (250 Bluecars/250 stations initially), peak ~3,980 cars / 1,084 stations / 5,935 charge points / ~127,000 subscribers by mid-2016, closed 31 July 2018.
↗ France 24 — France's car-sharing system Autolib' hits the end of the roadPublished 21 June 2018 archived copyEstablished press: 21 June 2018 syndicate vote to end the contract; deficit dispute; ~150,000 subscribers.
↗ EU Urban Mobility Observatory — Plug pulled on Paris' shared electric car service Autolib'Published 28 June 2018 archived copyIndependent EU-government coverage of the shutdown and syndicate decision.
↗ Banque des Territoires (Localtis) — Résiliation du contrat Autolib' : les communes franciliennes condamnées à indemniser le groupe Bolloré (24 Feb 2025)Localtis (Caisse des Dépôts) on the judgment of 21 February 2025: the appeal court ordered the SMAVM to pay Autolib' just over 66 million euros plus interest; records the 2018 demand for 233.7 million, the termination on 25 June 2018, and Bolloré's loss at first instance in 2023 where it claimed 235 million.
↗ France 3 Paris Île-de-France (franceinfo) — Autolib' : 66 millions d'euros pour le groupe Bolloré, voici pourquoi 98 communes doivent payer cette somme (21 Feb 2025)Public broadcaster on the same judgment: 44.9 million euros to compensate the group's losses plus further sums, split between 98 municipalities by station count — Paris with its 700 former stations, 97 outer-ring towns with 400 between them.
Show 1 more sourcesShow fewer
↗ France Bleu — Autolib' : un déficit abyssal de 294 millions d'euros d'après le groupe Bolloré (31 May 2018)Public radio, May 2018: Bolloré puts the deficit at 293 million euros and the city of Paris disputes the figures. Carries the contractual split — the operator undertook to absorb 60 million euros of losses, the remainder falling to the municipalities in proportion to the charging points installed.

📅 How old is the evidence?

Two clocks, kept apart: when this entry’s sources were published, and what has happened to its record in the atlas. Documented span: 2011–2018. 5 of 6 sources carry a publication date, from 31 May 2018 to 24 February 2025.

When the sources were published

  1. France Bleu (Radio France) · pressFrance Bleu — Autolib' : un déficit abyssal de 294 millions d'euros d'après le groupe Bolloré (31 May 2018)
  2. France 24 · pressFrance 24 — France's car-sharing system Autolib' hits the end of the road
  3. European Commission — Urban Mobility Observatory · international organisationEU Urban Mobility Observatory — Plug pulled on Paris' shared electric car service Autolib'
  4. France Télévisions (France 3 Paris Île-de-France) · pressFrance 3 Paris Île-de-France (franceinfo) — Autolib' : 66 millions d'euros pour le groupe Bolloré, voici pourquoi 98 communes doivent payer cette somme (21 Feb 2025)
  5. Localtis (Banque des Territoires) · pressBanque des Territoires (Localtis) — Résiliation du contrat Autolib' : les communes franciliennes condamnées à indemniser le groupe Bolloré (24 Feb 2025)

Every source, with links ↑

What happened to this record

  1. Sources last read
  2. Entered the record
  3. 3 sources added

Every revision, permanent →

Show your work What this page rests on and what it can’t tell you · all 9 claims with their sources · the forensic record

Evidence Passport · public beta 9 addressable claims, 6 source dossiers, one permanent baseline. The passport is unreviewed — an AI-assisted structural migration, not a human or expert endorsement. Every revision keeps a permanent copy under revision history.

Inspect the claims, one by one — verbatim text, sources and caveats for all 9

The text below is copied verbatim from the published record. Each claim names the source dossiers that carry it; caveats stay attached to the claim they qualify.

Claim 1 clm-0c3e8c1366eda0eb quantitative
Launched 5 December 2011 by the Bolloré Group, Autolib' was one of the world's first large all-electric, one-way car-share schemes, growing to roughly 4,000 Bluecars across about 1,080 stations in Paris and a hundred-odd suburban municipalities, with around 150,000 subscribers
Published field
snippet · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
The encyclopaedia entry gives the launch date and the peak fleet and station counts; France 24 puts the user base at about 150,000 at the end.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Autolib' — Wikipedia
  2. France 24 — France's car-sharing system Autolib' hits the end of the road
Claim 2 clm-4bef5164ab449151 quantitative
The concession put the first 60 million euros of losses on the operator and the rest on the municipalities in proportion to the stations on their territory
Published field
snippet · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
Public radio reports the contractual split: at signature Bolloré undertook to absorb losses up to 60 million euros, the remainder falling to the municipalities in proportion to the charging points installed.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. France Bleu — Autolib' : un déficit abyssal de 294 millions d'euros d'après le groupe Bolloré (31 May 2018)
Claim 3 clm-f64059015099b752 quantitative
In 2018 the operator notified the syndicate that the concession no longer made economic sense and asked for 233.7 million euros
Published field
snippet · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
Localtis records the 2018 notification of the concession's lack of economic interest and the request for financial compensation of 233.7 million euros.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Banque des Territoires (Localtis) — Résiliation du contrat Autolib' : les communes franciliennes condamnées à indemniser le groupe Bolloré (24 Feb 2025)
Claim 4 clm-77d804ff151ba893 quantitative
Bolloré put the projected deficit to 2023 at about 293 million euros, a figure the city of Paris disputed
Published field
snippet · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
Public radio reports the 293-million-euro deficit as Bolloré's own figure and states that the city of Paris contests the numbers.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. France Bleu — Autolib' : un déficit abyssal de 294 millions d'euros d'après le groupe Bolloré (31 May 2018)
Claim 5 clm-55e8e59e0f497a0b quantitative
The Autolib' Vélib' Métropole syndicate refused, terminated the contract on 25 June 2018 and the cars were withdrawn on 31 July
Published field
snippet · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
Localtis dates the termination to 25 June 2018; the European observatory reports the service stopping on 31 July in Paris and the suburban partner towns after the vote of 21 June.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Banque des Territoires (Localtis) — Résiliation du contrat Autolib' : les communes franciliennes condamnées à indemniser le groupe Bolloré (24 Feb 2025)
  2. EU Urban Mobility Observatory — Plug pulled on Paris' shared electric car service Autolib'
Claim 6 clm-11c6d900a4398d39 quantitative
Bolloré sued, lost at first instance in 2023, and won on appeal
Published field
snippet · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
Localtis records that the group took the syndicate to court, lost at first instance in 2023 where it claimed 235 million euros, and prevailed on appeal.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Banque des Territoires (Localtis) — Résiliation du contrat Autolib' : les communes franciliennes condamnées à indemniser le groupe Bolloré (24 Feb 2025)
Claim 7 clm-0c6d6b291e642f99 quantitative
On 21 February 2025 the Paris administrative court of appeal ordered the syndicate to pay Autolib' just over 66 million euros plus interest
Published field
impact · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
Both reports carry the judgment of 21 February 2025 ordering the syndicate to pay just over 66 million euros with interest.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. Banque des Territoires (Localtis) — Résiliation du contrat Autolib' : les communes franciliennes condamnées à indemniser le groupe Bolloré (24 Feb 2025)
  2. France 3 Paris Île-de-France (franceinfo) — Autolib' : 66 millions d'euros pour le groupe Bolloré, voici pourquoi 98 communes doivent payer cette somme (21 Feb 2025)
Claim 8 clm-0b0ef5af1ea2a8c0 quantitative
The bill is split between 98 municipalities by station count: Paris carries its 700 former stations and 97 outer-ring towns share the remaining 400
Published field
impact · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
The broadcaster reports the sum divided between the municipalities according to the number of stations on their territory, with Paris holding 700 former stations and 97 small-crown towns 400 between them.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. France 3 Paris Île-de-France (franceinfo) — Autolib' : 66 millions d'euros pour le groupe Bolloré, voici pourquoi 98 communes doivent payer cette somme (21 Feb 2025)
Claim 9 clm-84a1272dab89f42c quantitative
the contract itself put losses above 60 million euros on the municipalities in proportion to their stations, and an appeal court eventually said so too
Published field
lesson · verbatim
Mapping
mapped · no interpretation or interpolation added by this passport
What the mapping says
Public radio sets out the contractual split at signature; the appeal court of 21 February 2025 held the municipalities liable and fixed the sum.
Caveat
No claim-specific caveat recorded

Sources carrying this claim

  1. France Bleu — Autolib' : un déficit abyssal de 294 millions d'euros d'après le groupe Bolloré (31 May 2018)
  2. Banque des Territoires (Localtis) — Résiliation du contrat Autolib' : les communes franciliennes condamnées à indemniser le groupe Bolloré (24 Feb 2025)
Forensic record — source dossiers, gaps, hashes and the exact revision this page renders

This layer records what is known about each source, what is still missing, and the exact snapshot this page is rendering. A missing date, archive or hash stays visible as missing.

unreviewed Revision 2026-08-26-claim-mapping effective 2026-07-25 · created 2026-08-26

Awaiting operator and domain-expert review; publication of this revision implies neither.

sha256:1db81d60e66277108b60b4096289868bed72b10d9faa211cd1f8cd9345c535d0
Revision history → Permanent version link → Machine-readable record → Evidence Constitution →
9
of 9 claims mapped
6
source dossiers
5
publication dates recorded
3
archives linked
0
exact locators
0
content captures hashed

Governance facts carried by the record

Operator
Bolloré Group (concession from the Autolib' Vélib' Métropole syndicate)
Actor types
private
Funding model
ppp
Funding description
Not recorded
Cost
Not recorded
Ownership
Not recorded
Decision rights
Not recorded
Exit conditions
Not recorded

6 source dossiers

Autolib' — Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org · 1 linked claim

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-2e6e6a38c7b8a0a8
Publisher
Name not classified · en.wikipedia.org
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
Not recorded
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-07-25
Dossier created
2026-08-26
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
Open archived copy ↗ · 2026-04-17
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

Launch 5 Dec 2011 (250 Bluecars/250 stations initially), peak ~3,980 cars / 1,084 stations / 5,935 charge points / ~127,000 subscribers by mid-2016, closed 31 July 2018.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
France 24 — France's car-sharing system Autolib' hits the end of the road france24.com · 1 linked claim

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-3d8978169e2af930
Publisher
Name not classified · france24.com
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2018-06-21
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-07-25
Dossier created
2026-08-26
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
Open archived copy ↗ · 2025-11-14
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

Established press: 21 June 2018 syndicate vote to end the contract; deficit dispute; ~150,000 subscribers.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
EU Urban Mobility Observatory — Plug pulled on Paris' shared electric car service Autolib' urban-mobility-observatory.transport.ec.europa.eu · 1 linked claim

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-072fd39d677ced22
Publisher
Name not classified · urban-mobility-observatory.transport.ec.europa.eu
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2018-06-28
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-07-25
Dossier created
2026-08-26
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
Open archived copy ↗ · 2026-06-08
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

Independent EU-government coverage of the shutdown and syndicate decision.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
Banque des Territoires (Localtis) — Résiliation du contrat Autolib' : les communes franciliennes condamnées à indemniser le groupe Bolloré (24 Feb 2025) banquedesterritoires.fr · 5 linked claims

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-6d8ea129edef4d04
Publisher
Name not classified · banquedesterritoires.fr
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2025-02-24
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-07-25
Dossier created
2026-08-26
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

Localtis (Caisse des Dépôts) on the judgment of 21 February 2025: the appeal court ordered the SMAVM to pay Autolib' just over 66 million euros plus interest; records the 2018 demand for 233.7 million, the termination on 25 June 2018, and Bolloré's loss at first instance in 2023 where it claimed 235 million.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
France 3 Paris Île-de-France (franceinfo) — Autolib' : 66 millions d'euros pour le groupe Bolloré, voici pourquoi 98 communes doivent payer cette somme (21 Feb 2025) france3-regions.franceinfo.fr · 2 linked claims

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-2e2407dfdcf7d588
Publisher
Name not classified · france3-regions.franceinfo.fr
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2025-02-21
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-07-25
Dossier created
2026-08-26
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

Public broadcaster on the same judgment: 44.9 million euros to compensate the group's losses plus further sums, split between 98 municipalities by station count — Paris with its 700 former stations, 97 outer-ring towns with 400 between them.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
France Bleu — Autolib' : un déficit abyssal de 294 millions d'euros d'après le groupe Bolloré (31 May 2018) francebleu.fr · 3 linked claims

Open original source ↗

Stable source ID
src-70ed9be18989021e
Publisher
Name not classified · francebleu.fr
Type / language
web-page · language not classified
Published
2018-05-31
Updated
Not recorded
Source last checked
No source-level check date
Record last verified
2026-07-25
Dossier created
2026-08-26
Retrieved copy
No local capture recorded
Archive
No archived copy linked
Content hash
No captured content hash
Locator
Open the recorded source note

Public radio, May 2018: Bolloré puts the deficit at 293 million euros and the city of Paris disputes the figures. Carries the contractual split — the operator undertook to absorb 60 million euros of losses, the remainder falling to the municipalities in proportion to the charging points installed.

Descriptive only — not page/paragraph exact
Claims linked
Known limits of this passport
  • Publisher names and source languages have not yet been classified; domains are recorded without guessing.
  • Existing source notes are descriptive locators, not page- or paragraph-exact citations.
  • A missing archive, publication date or content hash is shown as null rather than inferred.
  • The project-level evidence grade ranks the strongest source in the entry; it is not a truth score for every claim.

Continue exploring

Compare this project

🇫🇷 Vélib' — Paris Bike-Share · Paris Same Paris shared-mobility wave, opposite fates: all-electric Autolib' failed in 2018 while bike-share Vélib survived its rough handover. 🇫🇮 Whim — Mobility-as-a-Service App · Helsinki Landmark smart-mobility schemes that failed on economics, not tech: Autolib' shut in 2018 on a €293M deficit, Whim went bankrupt in 2024. 🇳🇱 Roboat: Autonomous Canal Boats Research Program · Amsterdam Ambitious shared-mobility bets cut short: Autolib' folded on cost in 2018; Roboat's driverless-boat vision shrank to crew assistance.

Explore the wider context

🔑 Your Smart City Is Owned by Someone Else🛴 Shared mobility guide🏙️ Paris city profile🚲 Mobility projects📖 Demand-responsive transit📖 Geofencing📖 Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS)
📎 Cite this project

1001 Smart Cities (2026). “Autolib' Electric Car-Sharing” — Paris, France. The Smart City Atlas. https://1001smartcities.org/projects/paris-autolib/ (last verified 2026-07-25). Data: CC BY 4.0.

The underlying data is free to reuse with attribution — see the open data page.

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