Life without a car

[dabrockster]

I live in rural Columbus, but do not drive my car much either. I have a bus that picks em up and drops me off less than a block from my house. It has been sweet (Cost wise).

The Bus ride is OK, but is not like my other express Bus I had used prior.. But it works..

no sign of weight loss etc..

[TripletDaddy]

Really, northern Virginia. I lived in Alexandria, but south of the beltway (I think it's now considered more Springfield or Franconia). I worked near Tysons Corner/McLean and it took me 40+ minutes to drive that 12-15 miles or so.

My wife-to-be lived on King Street in Alexandria-proper. She taught at American University in the District, and had to take a bus, two metro-lines, and then another bus to campus. It was at least 75 minutes each way, but still a lot better than shelling out $1000 a year for a parking pass on campus.

Obviously, if we had stayed, we would have figured out a way to live closer to our jobs.

PS - my car's in the shop today. Sooner is doubly right.

I was in Crystal City and barely used a car unless I was driving somewhere on the weekend...out to the country, for example. It was fun.

While I enjoyed not having a car, I did learn quickly that any cost savings from losing the car are offset by new expenses. A monthly pass for the Metro was around $100, and iirc, you actually had to buy 4 weekly passes, not a monthly one. Cabs on weekends started adding up really quickly, even if you split the cabs. You had to factor in all this extra time to stand around, wait for the train, walk from station to apartment, etc. And in cold weather it was a complete PITA. It was either freezing or raining and I am trying to carry groceries, shopping bags, or whatnot. Very annoying. Also, groceries and daily sundries at the local "walkable" mom and pops were very expensive because their rent was usually high and because they knew you had no choice but to buy from them.

Having done both, I opt for car culture. Although I love visiting places with train systems because in short doses, it can be lots of fun.

[Mormon Red Death]

I am contemplating getting rid of my car. I travel mon-thurs so it sits at the airport and when I get home on the weekend I rarely drive. I have had a couple tickets (before my extensive travel) and my insurance has skyrocketed. I could probably save some good dough by not drivimg and insuring my car

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[wuapinmon]

I was in Crystal City and barely used a car unless I was driving somewhere on the weekend...out to the country, for example. It was fun.

While I enjoyed not having a car, I did learn quickly that any cost savings from losing the car are offset by new expenses. A monthly pass for the Metro was around $100, and iirc, you actually had to buy 4 weekly passes, not a monthly one. Cabs on weekends started adding up really quickly, even if you split the cabs. You had to factor in all this extra time to stand around, wait for the train, walk from station to apartment, etc. And in cold weather it was a complete PITA. It was either freezing or raining and I am trying to carry groceries, shopping bags, or whatnot. Very annoying. Also, groceries and daily sundries at the local "walkable" mom and pops were very expensive because their rent was usually high and because they knew you had no choice but to buy from them.

Having done both, I opt for car culture. Although I love visiting places with train systems because in short doses, it can be lots of fun.

This was my take on Washington DC during my six weeks there in 2008. Public Transportation is ridiculously expensive for the level of service you receive, and driving a car was a pain. But, I got freedom, privacy, and music in the car (thanks again, Tim).

[Scott R Nelson]

I don't drive my car all that much unless it's cold or raining or I need to haul something that won't fit on a motorcycle (mostly grocery store visits).

When my kids come to visit with their families they occasionally complain that our big car is a VW Beetle and why don't we get a minivan. That's because when we go somewhere we have to take their minivan rather than the one that we don't have. And we'll rent one if we need something larger for a few days, but that's rare.

I couldn't quite live without a car, but anymore I minimize the amount of driving that I do.

[oxcoug]

Since we moved to a bigger city, we don't drive much. We both walk to work (5-minute walk), and the neighborhood is totally walkable with many restaurants, stores, and an awesome movie theater.

We still own two cars, but we hardly ever drive them. We have driven a total of 1500 miles in the last 6 months, with the vast majority of these miles being a trip my wife took with her parents to some caves as well as trips to the store and to church.

I wanted to share some of my observations about how our lives have changed since we quit driving.

1) I have quit eating fast food. I used to eat fast food almost daily, and I never really worried about it because I'm missing a substantial part of my small intestine (terminal ileum) and therefore don't absorb cholesterol much. Anyway, I never really expected to quit eating fast food, but this experience has made me realize that I am very unlikely to eat fast food if I'm not driving.

2) We have both lost weight. We weren't really overweight. (She definitely wasn't overweight, but I guess I could have stood to lose 10 pounds or so.)

3) I used to listen to the radio every day (especially folks like Glenn Beck), but I don't get to do that anymore. End result is that I am much more at peace with the world when I arrive at work.

4) We have saved a ton of money on gas and other car-related expenses.

5) Russians like to refer to America as "одноэтажная Америка (one-storey America)" because it is surprising to them that our population is sprawled out in suburbs. I wouldn't trade any American building for the concrete monstrosities in which most Russians live, but I'm starting to wonder if America hasn't gone too far in the opposite direction.

People will do what they want to do, but I wonder about the costs of sprawl on our society as a whole. In any case, someday I'll undoubtedly go a little more suburban just like the rest of the bourgeoisie.

I sold my Jetta TDI station wagon (go ahead, judge) 18 months ago and currently don't own a car. For the most part, I love it. Of course I'm not married and don't have children and when/if I do that will change the equation as I don't worry about my own security in the 'hoods I walk through.

I split my average month between NYC and SF. In NYC a car (except for the occasional trek to Costco or Trader Joe's) is way more trouble than it is benefit. In SF, my office, my pad and Trader Joe's are all within a half mile of each other and it makes things easy.

I have a bike in SF, not in NYC.

If I want to get out of the City when I'm in NYC I rent a car. When I'm in SF and I want to go see my parents who are east of Sacramento I train it up for the weekend or rent a car. The train is actually extremely convenient.

For the most part it's been liberating. It would obviously be different if I lived in other places.

[WashingtonCoug]

I sold my Jetta TDI station wagon (go ahead, judge) 18 months ago and currently don't own a car. For the most part, I love it. Of course I'm not married and don't have children and when/if I do that will change the equation as I don't worry about my own security in the 'hoods I walk through.

I split my average month between NYC and SF. In NYC a car (except for the occasional trek to Costco or Trader Joe's) is way more trouble than it is benefit. In SF, my office, my pad and Trader Joe's are all within a half mile of each other and it makes things easy.

I have a bike in SF, not in NYC.

If I want to get out of the City when I'm in NYC I rent a car. When I'm in SF and I want to go see my parents who are east of Sacramento I train it up for the weekend or rent a car. The train is actually extremely convenient.

For the most part it's been liberating. It would obviously be different if I lived in other places.

That's a pretty cool situation. What do you do in SF and NYC?

[Babs]

Since we moved to a bigger city, we don't drive much. We both walk to work (5-minute walk), and the neighborhood is totally walkable with many restaurants, stores, and an awesome movie theater.

We still own two cars, but we hardly ever drive them. We have driven a total of 1500 miles in the last 6 months, with the vast majority of these miles being a trip my wife took with her parents to some caves as well as trips to the store and to church.

I wanted to share some of my observations about how our lives have changed since we quit driving.

1) I have quit eating fast food. I used to eat fast food almost daily, and I never really worried about it because I'm missing a substantial part of my small intestine (terminal ileum) and therefore don't absorb cholesterol much. Anyway, I never really expected to quit eating fast food, but this experience has made me realize that I am very unlikely to eat fast food if I'm not driving.

2) We have both lost weight. We weren't really overweight. (She definitely wasn't overweight, but I guess I could have stood to lose 10 pounds or so.)

3) I used to listen to the radio every day (especially folks like Glenn Beck), but I don't get to do that anymore. End result is that I am much more at peace with the world when I arrive at work.

4) We have saved a ton of money on gas and other car-related expenses.

This has been our experience, almost word-for-word. We have two cars, but we're not using them anymore. In three months, we've bought one tank for each. I spend an hour walking a day (two trips to school and back). Flash bikes. It's been wonderfully freeing.

[landpoke]

It'll be interesting to see how much more smug self-congratulation y'all can cram into this thread. Seems about fit to burst.

[Babs]

It'll be interesting to see how much more smug self-congratulation y'all can cram into this thread. Seems about fit to burst.

Ha! This is nothing. You should see me get started on life without facebook!

[TripletDaddy]

It'll be interesting to see how much more smug self-congratulation y'all can cram into this thread. Seems about fit to burst.

Don't lump me in with these posers. I opted for car culture.

"oh I love not using my car. Unless I use it, in which case I love using my car. It is all so refreshing!"

[Donuthole]

I think this thread should be re-titled "Life With a Car I Only Use When I Don't Feel Like Walking or Using Public Transit".

[Babs]

Don't lump me in with these posers. I opted for car culture.

How much is that diamond pass costing you again?

[Babs]

I think this thread should be re-titled "Life With a Car I Only Use When I Don't Feel Like Walking or Using Public Transit".

I don't live life without a car. I have two. But we did resist the (somewhat intense) pressure from our realtor to buy 20-25 minutes outside of central Austin and commute, and I am really really glad that we did. I hadn't realized how much driving stressed me out until I didn't have to do it anymore.

[Uncle Ted]

I walk to work. It is about 18' to my home office.