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Budget Wins 'Environmental Initiative of the Year' Award

22 March 2000

Budget Wins 'Environmental Initiative of the Year' Award

         -- Launches Gasoline-Electric Honda Insight Hybrid for Rent,
                  Travels 600 to 700 Miles on Single Tank --


    LISLE, Ill., March 22 Budget Rent a Car International,
Inc. received the prestigious "Environmental Initiative of the Year" Award at
the recent Fleet News 2000 Awards for its pioneering initiative -- the
Edinburgh City Car Club.  The goals of the UK's first commercial city car club
are to reduce car mileage, to reduce demand for on-street parking and to
ensure that there is more cost effective access to car use for everyone.
    The judges commented that "Budget is trying to break the mold with its
City Car Club and deserves to succeed...  It is a visionary concept delivering
direct solutions to the transportation problem."
    The City Car Club eliminates the cost of car ownership and offers the
flexibility of personal transportation.  Customers can choose the vehicle they
need from small city cars, hatchbacks, sports coupes and family cars, to vans
and people carriers.  Members can use their vehicle for as little as one hour
and can even give short notice to book a vehicle.  Every City Car Club vehicle
has the potential to replace up to six other vehicles.
    Based on the success of the Edinburgh program, Budget will shortly be
operating the first City Car Club in central London.  For more information on
the Internet visit Web site: http://www.citycarclub.co.uk .
    On the environmental front in the U.S., Budget EV Rental Cars, a joint
effort between Budget Rent a Car and EV Rental Cars, announced it now has
gasoline-electric Honda Insight hybrids available for rent at Budget's
Los Angeles International Airport and Beverly Hills locations.  The Honda
Insight can travel 600 to 700 miles on a single tank and never requires
charging from an outside source.  The hybrid joins Budget EV Rental Car's
growing fleet of electric and natural gas vehicles available at several Budget
locations throughout California.
    As a wholly owned subsidiary of Budget Group, Inc. , Budget Rent
a Car operates under the same name worldwide, with more than 3,000 airport and
local market locations in over 120 countries and territories.  Budget's
WorldClass Fleet is comprised of more than 30 percent specialty vehicles,
ranging from sport utility vehicles, convertibles and luxury cars to minivans,
pickups and environmental vehicles.  In Europe, Budget was the first major car
rental company to rent LPG (liquid petroleum gas) vehicles throughout the
United Kingdom, and since 1996 has been offering electric cars in Paris and
Lyons, and methane-powered cars in Sweden.