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Building a Python-Based Car Rental Management System: A Comprehensive Guide

Learn how to build a Python-based car rental management system with file handling and menu-based operations. Includes functionality for renting cars, returning cars, and tracking transactions.

<p>Managing a car rental company involves keeping track of vehicles, customers, and transactions. This blog outlines how to build a Python-based <strong>Car Rental Management System</strong>. The system uses <strong>file handling</strong> for data storage and retrieval, and features a user-friendly menu to simplify operations. Perfect for both beginners and advanced programmers, this project brings practical programming concepts to life.</p>
<hr>
<h3><strong><img src="https://files-storage-l.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com/epic-essay/2oBBVcXMhZBtvYoWlH8cTFlcSluZ5AdyWUEgqDRL.png" width="324" height="120"></strong></h3>
<h3><strong>1. System Overview</strong></h3>
<p>The management system relies on four text files:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong><code>vehicles.txt</code></strong>: Stores details of all available vehicles.</li>
<li><strong><code>customers.txt</code></strong>: Stores information about customers.</li>
<li><strong><code>rentedVehicles.txt</code></strong>: Tracks currently rented vehicles.</li>
<li><strong><code>transactions.txt</code></strong>: Logs completed rental transactions.</li>
</ul>
<p>Each file is updated dynamically as the program runs.</p>
<hr>
<h3><strong>2. Key Features of the System</strong></h3>
<h4><strong>Menu Options</strong></h4>
<p>The system provides a menu-based interface with the following options:</p>
<ol>
<li><strong>List Available Cars</strong>: Displays all vehicles that are not currently rented.</li>
<li><strong>Rent a Car</strong>: Allows a customer to rent a vehicle.</li>
<li><strong>Return a Car</strong>: Records the return of a rented vehicle and calculates rental charges.</li>
<li><strong>Count the Money</strong>: Displays the total revenue generated.</li>
</ol>
<h4><strong>File Handling</strong></h4>
<p>All data is stored in text files, ensuring persistence. Python's <code>open()</code> function is used for reading and writing data.</p>
<hr>
<h3><strong>3. Implementing the System</strong></h3>
<h4><strong>1. Setting Up the Menu</strong></h4>
<p>The main menu is the entry point for the program. Use Python’s <code>input()</code> function to navigate options:</p>
<div class="contain-inline-size rounded-md border-[0.5px] border-token-border-medium relative bg-token-sidebar-surface-primary dark:bg-gray-950">
<div class="flex items-center text-token-text-secondary px-4 py-2 text-xs font-sans justify-between rounded-t-md h-9 bg-token-sidebar-surface-primary dark:bg-token-main-surface-secondary select-none"> </div>
<div class="overflow-y-auto p-4" dir="ltr"><code class="!whitespace-pre hljs language-python"><span class="hljs-keyword">def</span> <span class="hljs-title function_">display_menu</span>():
    <span class="hljs-built_in">print</span>(<span class="hljs-string">"1. List Available Cars"</span>)
    <span class="hljs-built_in">print</span>(<span class="hljs-string">"2. Rent a Car"</span>)
    <span class="hljs-built_in">print</span>(<span class="hljs-string">"3. Return a Car"</span>)
    <span class="hljs-built_in">print</span>(<span class="hljs-string">"4. Count the Money"</span>)
    <span class="hljs-built_in">print</span>(<span class="hljs-string">"5. Exit"</span>)
    choice = <span class="hljs-built_in">input</span>(<span class="hljs-string">"Enter your choice: "</span>)
    <span class="hljs-keyword">return</span> choice
</code></div>
</div>
<hr>
<h4><strong>2. Listing Available Cars</strong></h4>
<p>Read from <code>vehicles.txt</code> and <code>rentedVehicles.txt</code> to identify available cars:</p>
<div class="contain-inline-size rounded-md border-[0.5px] border-token-border-medium relative bg-token-sidebar-surface-primary dark:bg-gray-950">
<div class="sticky top-9 md:top-[5.75rem]">
<div class="absolute bottom-0 right-2 flex h-9 items-center">
<div class="flex items-center rounded bg-token-sidebar-surface-primary px-2 font-sans text-xs text-token-text-secondary dark:bg-token-main-surface-secondary"> </div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="overflow-y-auto p-4" dir="ltr"><code class="!whitespace-pre hljs language-python"><span class="hljs-keyword">def</span> <span class="hljs-title function_">list_available_cars</span>():
    <span class="hljs-keyword">with</span> <span class="hljs-built_in">open</span>(<span class="hljs-string">'vehicles.txt'</span>, <span class="hljs-string">'r'</span>) <span class="hljs-keyword">as</span> vehicles_file, <span class="hljs-built_in">open</span>(<span class="hljs-string">'rentedVehicles.txt'</span>, <span class="hljs-string">'r'</span>) <span class="hljs-keyword">as</span> rented_file:
        rented_cars = {line.split(<span class="hljs-string">","</span>)[<span class="hljs-number">0</span>] <span class="hljs-keyword">for</span> line <span class="hljs-keyword">in</span> rented_file}
        <span class="hljs-keyword">for</span> line <span class="hljs-keyword">in</span> vehicles_file:
            car_data = line.strip().split(<span class="hljs-string">","</span>)
            <span class="hljs-keyword">if</span> car_data[<span class="hljs-number">0</span>] <span class="hljs-keyword">not</span> <span class="hljs-keyword">in</span> rented_cars:
                <span class="hljs-built_in">print</span>(<span class="hljs-string">f"Car: <span class="hljs-subst">{car_data[<span class="hljs-number">1</span>]}</span>, Rate: $<span class="hljs-subst">{car_data[<span class="hljs-number">2</span>]}</span>/day"</span>)
</code></div>
</div>
<hr>
<h4><strong>3. Renting a Car</strong></h4>
<p>Append rental details to <code>rentedVehicles.txt</code>. For new customers, add their details to <code>customers.txt</code>:</p>
<div class="contain-inline-size rounded-md border-[0.5px] border-token-border-medium relative bg-token-sidebar-surface-primary dark:bg-gray-950">
<div class="flex items-center text-token-text-secondary px-4 py-2 text-xs font-sans justify-between rounded-t-md h-9 bg-token-sidebar-surface-primary dark:bg-token-main-surface-secondary select-none"> </div>
<div class="overflow-y-auto p-4" dir="ltr"><code class="!whitespace-pre hljs language-python"><span class="hljs-keyword">def</span> <span class="hljs-title function_">rent_car</span>():
    car_plate = <span class="hljs-built_in">input</span>(<span class="hljs-string">"Enter the car's plate number: "</span>)
    customer_birthday = <span class="hljs-built_in">input</span>(<span class="hljs-string">"Enter your birthdate (DD/MM/YYYY): "</span>)
    <span class="hljs-keyword">with</span> <span class="hljs-built_in">open</span>(<span class="hljs-string">'rentedVehicles.txt'</span>, <span class="hljs-string">'a'</span>) <span class="hljs-keyword">as</span> rented_file:
        rented_file.write(<span class="hljs-string">f"<span class="hljs-subst">{car_plate}</span>,<span class="hljs-subst">{customer_birthday}</span>,<span class="hljs-subst">{datetime.now().strftime('%d/%m/%Y %H:%M')}</span>\n"</span>)
    <span class="hljs-built_in">print</span>(<span class="hljs-string">f"Car <span class="hljs-subst">{car_plate}</span> rented successfully!"</span>)
</code></div>
</div>
<hr>
<h4><strong>4. Returning a Car</strong></h4>
<p>Calculate rental charges based on the rental duration and update <code>transactions.txt</code>:</p>
<div class="contain-inline-size rounded-md border-[0.5px] border-token-border-medium relative bg-token-sidebar-surface-primary dark:bg-gray-950">
<div class="flex items-center text-token-text-secondary px-4 py-2 text-xs font-sans justify-between rounded-t-md h-9 bg-token-sidebar-surface-primary dark:bg-token-main-surface-secondary select-none"> </div>
<div class="overflow-y-auto p-4" dir="ltr"><code class="!whitespace-pre hljs language-python"><span class="hljs-keyword">from</span> datetime <span class="hljs-keyword">import</span> datetime

<span class="hljs-keyword">def</span> <span class="hljs-title function_">return_car</span>():
    car_plate = <span class="hljs-built_in">input</span>(<span class="hljs-string">"Enter the car's plate number: "</span>)
    <span class="hljs-keyword">with</span> <span class="hljs-built_in">open</span>(<span class="hljs-string">'rentedVehicles.txt'</span>, <span class="hljs-string">'r'</span>) <span class="hljs-keyword">as</span> rented_file:
        lines = rented_file.readlines()
    <span class="hljs-keyword">for</span> line <span class="hljs-keyword">in</span> lines:
        <span class="hljs-keyword">if</span> car_plate <span class="hljs-keyword">in</span> line:
            _, customer_birthday, start_time = line.strip().split(<span class="hljs-string">","</span>)
            start_time = datetime.strptime(start_time, <span class="hljs-string">'%d/%m/%Y %H:%M'</span>)
            end_time = datetime.now()
            duration = (end_time - start_time).days + <span class="hljs-number">1</span>
            rate = get_rate(car_plate)  <span class="hljs-comment"># Function to fetch rate from vehicles.txt</span>
            total_price = duration * rate
            <span class="hljs-keyword">with</span> <span class="hljs-built_in">open</span>(<span class="hljs-string">'transactions.txt'</span>, <span class="hljs-string">'a'</span>) <span class="hljs-keyword">as</span> transactions_file:
                transactions_file.write(<span class="hljs-string">f"<span class="hljs-subst">{car_plate}</span>,<span class="hljs-subst">{customer_birthday}</span>,<span class="hljs-subst">{start_time}</span>,<span class="hljs-subst">{end_time}</span>,<span class="hljs-subst">{duration}</span>,<span class="hljs-subst">{total_price:<span class="hljs-number">.2</span>f}</span>\n"</span>)
            <span class="hljs-built_in">print</span>(<span class="hljs-string">f"Car returned successfully! Total price: $<span class="hljs-subst">{total_price:<span class="hljs-number">.2</span>f}</span>"</span>)
</code></div>
</div>
<hr>
<h4><strong>5. Counting the Money</strong></h4>
<p>Sum the prices from <code>transactions.txt</code>:</p>
<div class="contain-inline-size rounded-md border-[0.5px] border-token-border-medium relative bg-token-sidebar-surface-primary dark:bg-gray-950">
<div class="sticky top-9 md:top-[5.75rem]">
<div class="absolute bottom-0 right-2 flex h-9 items-center">
<div class="flex items-center rounded bg-token-sidebar-surface-primary px-2 font-sans text-xs text-token-text-secondary dark:bg-token-main-surface-secondary"> </div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="overflow-y-auto p-4" dir="ltr"><code class="!whitespace-pre hljs language-python"><span class="hljs-keyword">def</span> <span class="hljs-title function_">count_money</span>():
    total_revenue = <span class="hljs-number">0</span>
    <span class="hljs-keyword">with</span> <span class="hljs-built_in">open</span>(<span class="hljs-string">'transactions.txt'</span>, <span class="hljs-string">'r'</span>) <span class="hljs-keyword">as</span> transactions_file:
        <span class="hljs-keyword">for</span> line <span class="hljs-keyword">in</span> transactions_file:
            total_revenue += <span class="hljs-built_in">float</span>(line.strip().split(<span class="hljs-string">","</span>)[-<span class="hljs-number">1</span>])
    <span class="hljs-built_in">print</span>(<span class="hljs-string">f"Total revenue: $<span class="hljs-subst">{total_revenue:<span class="hljs-number">.2</span>f}</span>"</span>)
</code></div>
</div>
<hr>
<h3><strong>4. Project Extensions</strong></h3>
<p>Enhance the system with these additional features:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Search Functionality</strong>: Allow searching for cars or customers.</li>
<li><strong>Data Validation</strong>: Validate inputs like date format and registration numbers.</li>
<li><strong>Graphical Interface</strong>: Replace the menu with a GUI using frameworks like Tkinter or PyQt.</li>
</ul>
<hr>
<h3><strong>5. Challenges and Learnings</strong></h3>
<p>This project covers key concepts like:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>File Handling</strong>: Read, write, and append data in text files.</li>
<li><strong>Data Processing</strong>: Parse and manipulate comma-separated values.</li>
<li><strong>Menu Design</strong>: Create intuitive, user-friendly navigation.</li>
</ul>

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Building a Python-Based Car Rental Management System: A Comprehensive Guide

Learn how to build a Python-based car rental management system with file handling and menu-based operations. Includes functionality for renting cars, returning cars, and tracking transactions.

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