Oct. 4: Calcuttans aren't just tapping app buttons to hail cabs but also to take the wheels of rented cars, ensuring self-drive car rentals record a "good usage".

People from the 21-29 age group who don't own a car but love to drive one with privacy and freedom are increasingly hiring cars.

Zoomcar and MyChoize, the two operators in the city, have a combined fleet of just over 100 vehicles.

"The demand far outstrips the supply," an operator said. Zoomcar sees 300-400 bookings every week. MyChoize, a part of Orix, a Japanese car rental company, sees 17 bookings on average every month.

While Zoomcar has 90 cars and four parking lots in the city, it has 1,000 cars in Bangalore, its headquarters, 500 in Delhi, and 450 in Mumbai. MyChoize has nine cars in the city.

The average booking in Delhi or Mumbai is five times more than in Calcutta.

"Bookings see a rise during festivals like Puja and Christmas," a Zoomcar spokesperson said. "September, December, January and May are strong periods."

"About 63 per cent of our clientele is in the 21-29 age group. These are students and working professionals.... Some hire cars for late-night drives or when going out for family dinners or other engagements.

"There are others who hire cars for intra-city drives to attend meetings or visit factories or warehouses," the Zoomcar spokesperson said.

The cars on hire include hatchbacks, sedans, SUVs, and premium cars - Figo, Swift, Ritz, Grand i10, Etios, Dzire, Baleno, Aspire, Amaze, Ciaz, EcoSport, Creta, Scorpio, XUV, Fortuner, Endeavour, and Innova to name a few.

Hourly weekday rentals vary between Rs 70 for hatchbacks and Rs 265 for Mercedes-Benz GLA or Audi Q3.

A person has to book a car online or through the app or over the phone for both operators. Once the payment, including a security deposit, is done and the driving licence uploaded, the car can be collected from the designated parking areas or be delivered on one's doorstep for a price.

The security deposit is refunded once the vehicle is back with the company.

Zoomcar provides fuel for free and will reimburse if a person has to buy fuel. MyChoize delivers a vehicle with a tank full of fuel and expects it back refuelled.

In case of accidents, Zoomcar charges a maximum of Rs 10,000 for damage while MyChoize restricts it to a security deposit of Rs 6,000.

"Hiring a car with a driver is costlier plus there is the added advantage of a seat freeing up in the absence of a driver," Ananda Biswas, regional head, Zoomcar, said.

"When you have to make multiple stops at various parts of the city, it's difficult to hire app cabs at every stop. It makes more sense to hire a car for several hours. And self-drive car rentals make it much cheaper," Debangshu Bhattacharya, in his 20s, said.

He hires cars from Zoomcar after seeing their advertisements in Bangalore, Bhattacharya said.

Sapna Kashyap from Sikkim, who works with TCS in Calcutta, said owning a car didn't make sense since she wasn't from the city. But she needed a car for a day when her family came down to visit her. "I hired a hatchback from Zoomcar and took my family around the town."

She has also driven to Mandarmani with friends, she said.