NEW YORK - During the annual meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), the Hertz Corp. announced its commitment to bring the next generation of electric vehicles to the general public through the company's car rental and car sharing operations.

"As the world's largest general-use airport car-rental brand, Hertz is uniquely positioned to introduce multiple groups of consumers -- urban drivers, university students, travelers and corporations -- to all-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles," Hertz said in a released statement. "Hertz's leadership in this initiative will catalyze other partners and cities to provide additional infrastructure for mass scaling of electric mobility."

Hertz and its partners are planning to roll out the EV rental program starting this autumn with full-scale deployment in both the U.S. and other countries beginning in 2011. Hertz Global EV will provide a range of all-electric vehicles (EV) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) and charging stations on a rental and car-sharing basis.

"Our Hertz Global EV program will galvanize support for building out the infrastructure platform necessary to make electric vehicle travel an everyday reality," said Mark P. Frissora, Hertz's chairman and CEO. "With our rental and car sharing expertise, industry relationships and global footprint, we are in an ideal position to lead this new frontier in transportation. This is the game-changer for electric mobility."

Hertz is building partnerships that will help scale up electric vehicle and plug-in hybrid usage for the general public. Hertz is forming strategic partnerships with manufacturers, charging station providers, municipalities, NGOs, corporations and other stakeholders.