The Parisian electric-car sharing program, Autolib, is on track for next year’s launch.

A fleet of 3,000 vehicles has been ordered by city officials for what will be the largest such operation in the world. The city hopes to emulate the popular bicycle rental system Velib, despite that program sustaining severe damages from customers.

Autolib, abbreviated from ‘auto liberte’, will allow city residents to reserve and electric vehicle across the city whenever the need arises, while avoiding the high-profile issues of traffic congestion, parking and pollution.

Since 2001, Paris has undergone a transport Renaissance, with a 25 per cent reduction in downtown traffic thanks to the introduction of a host of environmentally friendly policies that have restricted automobile use,  which London Mayor Boris Johnson has made no secret of wishing to better. The Velib third anniversary was recently celebrated in the tree-lined 20th arrondissement of the city, where jazz musicians and local cafeterias proudly launched two new cycle lanes. Annick Lepetit, the deputy mayor of Paris, even suggested that ultimately there may no longer be a need for cars within the city, suggesting that the lower cost and greater practicalities for the user and the environment may one day prove overwhelming.

However, there is still considerable doubt over the potential of the Autolib scheme to succeed after the Velib program endured widespread vandalism and theft in the initial stages. Of the 20,000 bikes launched, some 8,000 wound up in the Seine, hung from lampposts or were stolen outright, although the sturdy electric bicycles have slowly begun to garner public support and can be found at numerous stations throughout the city.