Originally Posted by
littledog
Yes,it is a real concern. It just doesn't seem right to belittle people who need to own a car and can not really afford even a junker. So they go into debt Yet public transportation-the bus- is not adequate in that it doesn't have enough routes or run often enough on weekends or holidays or night hours. A lot of people work 2nd or 3rd shift jobs when the buses don't run. Also weekends and holidays. Like hotel maids,restaurant and bar employees,janitors,nurses aids and such. The jobs of the new service economy.
It is hard for folks who don't have much money. I know a single mother on disability due to a bad back. The only way to get her kids into a good school was to move to subsidized housing in a small town. Her car payment on a used minivan takes almost a third of her income. She "needs" the car because the closest bus is a couple miles away, and the kids have to go places too. I couldn't argue with her logic.
Howeer, like most addictions, a car dependency is often at least part psychological. People think they need a car, therefore they do need a car.