Getting to class on time just became a lot easier thanks to a new partnership between the car-sharing service Zipcar and the University of Toronto.

The university-wide program, the first of its kind in Toronto, will provide students and faculty with access to a range of cars on campus and throughout downtown Toronto.

"This is a new option for university students and faculty who want to travel off campus to attend interviews, run errands or take a weekend trip home," Zipcar chief executive officer Scot Griffith said in a release Thursday.

"[The program] eliminates hundreds of dollars in monthly personal transportation costs such as gas, insurance and maintenance, which are included in Zipcar's rates. In essence, we are lowering the overall cost of attending university in Toronto," Griffith said.

Car-sharing programs, in which users pay for an annual membership and hourly fees to gain access to a set of automobiles, have grown in popularity around the world thanks to rising gas, insurance and parking expenses.

Advocates also say car-sharing provides users with a sustainable, eco-friendly means of transportation.

University of Toronto students and faculty will not have to pay the standard $30 application fee and will pay a discounted annual fee of $30. Gas, parking and insurance are included in the membership and hourly rates.

Zipcar, which has 100 cars in Toronto, and rival AutoShare are the city's two major car-sharing programs.

AutoShare launched modestly in 1998 with just 16 members and three cars. Today, it offers members a fleet of 125 cars.