Ulm, Germany - Daimler has launched a new urban car pool system in the German city of Ulm allowing motorists access to a fleet of 50 Smart minicars any time and any where within the city limits.

The "car2go" system will be available to all persons with a driver's license. After a one-off registration process, the customer's driving license is given an electronic chip to unlock the car.

Once the trip has been completed, the driver simply parks the rental Smart within the city limits. Charges are based on time for an amount of 0.19 euro cents (0.23 dollars) per minute including fuel, taxation and insurance costs.

During the pilot phase of the project, the fleet is available only to Daimler's employees and will be extended to all residents of Ulm and visitors to the city in early 2009.

A similar mobility concept is being implemented by the German railways Deutsche Bahn (DB) in 100 cities. Customers can book a bicycle under www. callabike. de at a cost of 0.08 cents (0.10 dollars) per minute or a maximum of 9 euros per day. (dpa)