So my wife's been telling me we should get rid of our car for a while. On Sunday it started running roughly; I took it to the shop and found out it needed $500 in repairs. It seems like, every few months, we're cramming a couple hundred bucks into the thing, not to mention gas and insurance. So I figured what the heck, I just got a new bike anyhow, and I'm ditching the car.
I've never NOT had a car, so tell me I'm not doing something crazy.

You're not doing something crazy.

There. How's that?

Next month I'll have my ninth anniversary of being car-free. Can't see why I'd want one any more.

Who'd of guessed that you'd get this kind of advice in a car-free forum, eh?

Our car died last April. At first I was going to get a replacement, but then we were going to move out of state soon, so I thought, just wait till we get there. A few months went by, and I started getting used to it. Then I started thinking of ways to keep this state going of being car free. I picked up a folding bike and started really enjoying it.

Now nearly a year later and in a new state with no car and a nice full size hybrid bike with pannier and lights, my whole mind set has changed. I actually don't need a car. I no longer need a car, and probably never did. I am going to get a 96 inch bike trailer and I will be set for picking up and/or moving nearly anything that I never could with my car.

So if you are thinking about doing this, give it a go, it might just be the best thing you have done in a long time. It does take some getting used to. Identify the locations of car rental places nearby, bus stop and routes, and train if you have one. Once you have that settled, you have every advantage and will never be stranded even for long distance stuff.

I am doing a lot more locally these days and exploring my surroundings in more depth than ever before, except maybe when I was a kid. And this type of exploration is what makes you a knowledgeable local that knows all the nooks and crannies that make your local area so interesting.

Congratulations! I actually became officially car free today as well. :D I owned a fullsize truck which I hadn't driven since sometime last year, and I really wanted to get rid of it before it gets even harder to sell a gas guzzler. Today I did, and it's the first time I haven't owned a car in 11 years. I feel like I just took off a 4400 pound backpack.

I've never NOT had a car, so tell me I'm not doing something crazy.

Congratulations! Give it a few weeks, and it will probably end up being one of the sanest things you ever did. And remember, if you have any problems, just start a thread and we'll try to help you out. :)

Congratulations! I actually became officially car free today as well. :D I owned a fullsize truck which I hadn't driven since sometime last year, and I really wanted to get rid of it before it gets even harder to sell a gas guzzler. Today I did, and it's the first time I haven't owned a car in 11 years. I feel like I just took off a 4400 pound backpack.

Congrats to Lamplight too! :)

Congrats to Lamplight too! :)

Thanks! Ironically, today I spent about 8 miserable hours in a car because of a wedding I had to go to in East Tennessee. I drove there and my brother drove back...in pouring rain. My hatred for driving has now increased ten fold, and I'm not exaggerating.

I've never NOT had a car, so tell me I'm not doing something crazy.

I've had a car since I was 15 (34 now) and last summer my car sat out front and didn't move. I sold it in the fall and was car free for the first time ever. I borrowed my Dad's old van to renovate our shop and he said I could just keep it if I wanted. After the shop was done it hasn't moved since. I'm giving it back as soon as the snow piled around it melts!

Thanks! Ironically, today I spent about 8 miserable hours in a car because of a wedding I had to go to in East Tennessee. I drove there and my brother drove back...in pouring rain. My hatred for driving has now increased ten fold, and I'm not exaggerating.

Life sucks...then you are forced to drive! I get to feeling that way every now and again, like usually on Sundays or Fridays when I am driving to or from my jobsite that is 220 miles from home:( I usually try to alter my route a bit and take different roads. And I attempt to avoid the interstates as much as possible.

Aaron:)

I used to like driving, now, I usually only drive when making deliveries the regular truck driver can't
manage, which means downtown. ( Yuck! )

You might want to look at joining a car share program, there will be times a car is the best option.
( until they wise up and build a decent infrastructure )

If you are anything like me, you will start to notice how car culture pervades ( and distorts ) everything.

As a young man, I left home before I had bought a car. Since then the only thing that I've found really required a car was women. If your wife is saying go car-free, I'd say go for it.

Thanks, everybody. I guess I'll see how it goes, can't be too hard 'till next winter. . . I'm not missing my car much right now, as driving loses all its fun in the city. Plus, my car feels like it handles like a marshmallow vs. my bike.

I got my license taken away a couple years ago due to speeding and sold my car. I didn't like not driving and having a car initially but got used to it pretty quick. I decided to get a bike because walking or taking the bus wasn't always the ideal option...this was a $90 chain store bike by the way. I found that cycling was a great way to get around for a lot of reasons.

Now, I don't see myself getting a car any time soon. I really don't care to have one. There are so many negatives to them and the only positive is they can take you long distances in a reasonable amount of time. I now have a true commuter bike that I paid good money (to me) for along with a lot of clothing for different weather and all the accessories I need. I truly like cycling now.

I'm glad that I was put into this situation because it brought cycling to my attention. Like most people in this society, I thought that cars were what you use to get around. It's nice to have found another option that's much cheaper, more enjoyable and improves ones health.

Life sucks...then you are forced to drive! I get to feeling that way every now and again, like usually on Sundays or Fridays when I am driving to or from my jobsite that is 220 miles from home:( I usually try to alter my route a bit and take different roads. And I attempt to avoid the interstates as much as possible.

Aaron:)

IOW, you drive pretty much the way you ride a bike! :D

Me too. I had to drive a friend in his car across town. I took my usual route, which included residential streets and even a couple alleys and a parking lot. My friend, who has lived here his whole life, said, "Where the hell are we? This is a stupid route. It's the same way you'd go if you were riding your bike, isn't it?"

I got my license taken away a couple years ago due to speeding and sold my car. I didn't like not driving and having a car initially but got used to it pretty quick. I decided to get a bike because walking or taking the bus wasn't always the ideal option...this was a $90 chain store bike by the way. I found that cycling was a great way to get around for a lot of reasons.

Now, I don't see myself getting a car any time soon. I really don't care to have one. There are so many negatives to them and the only positive is they can take you long distances in a reasonable amount of time. I now have a true commuter bike that I paid good money (to me) for along with a lot of clothing for different weather and all the accessories I need. I truly like cycling now.

I'm glad that I was put into this situation because it brought cycling to my attention. Like most people in this society, I thought that cars were what you use to get around. It's nice to have found another option that's much cheaper, more enjoyable and improves ones health.

If you got that many speeding tickets, I bet you used to enjoy driving. If so, this story proves that even a gung-ho driver can learn to prefer cycling and being carfree.

(OTOH, maybe the speeding tickets meant that you hated driving so much that you couldn't wait to get it over with! :))

If you got that many speeding tickets, I bet you used to enjoy driving. If so, this story proves that even a gung-ho driver can learn to prefer cycling and being carfree.

(OTOH, maybe the speeding tickets meant that you hated driving so much that you couldn't wait to get it over with! :))

I wasn't actually all that gung-ho. I was a cop magnet. I swear! I would ride with people doing much worse than I and they wouldn't have issues. They even seemed able to talk their way out of tickets where I was never able to.

I tip my cycling cap to all of you that are car free. I am jealous! You guys give me inspiration that I might be there one day...
Roody - I love your comment about taking the same routes by car as you do by bike. I find myself doing the same thing sometimes. There are actually a couple of places that I would not know how to find by car, as I bike there utilizing a few bike paths.

IOW, you drive pretty much the way you ride a bike! :D

Me too. I had to drive a friend in his car across town. I took my usual route, which included residential streets and even a couple alleys and a parking lot. My friend, who has lived here his whole life, said, "Where the hell are we? This is a stupid route. It's the same way you'd go if you were riding your bike, isn't it?"


Yup!:p I am always looking for alternate routes to and from various places, always evaluating them as potential cycling routes:D But sometimes it backfires...like the time I almost got my crew cab dually stuck in a narrow alley:o had to back out about 2 blocks:rolleyes:

Aaron:)

If you got that many speeding tickets, I bet you used to enjoy driving. If so, this story proves that even a gung-ho driver can learn to prefer cycling and being carfree.

(OTOH, maybe the speeding tickets meant that you hated driving so much that you couldn't wait to get it over with! :))

If you can believe it, I was once very into cars. I loved looking at them, driving them, and cleaning them. But now I hate all of that with a passion. :D

These days, on any Saturday you can walk into a car dealership and drive out. Going carless for a while, especially in a big city, seems low-risk (your circumstances may dictate otherwise of course). So give it a shot. Just tell yourself that you're busy this week, you'll go carless this week, and next Saturday you'll go car shopping. Repeat that process every week. While you are doing that, start putting into a savings account the monthly car insurance premium plus maybe $85 a month ($1000 a year) for the repairs you are not making. Then you can make a game out of seeing how long you can go without getting a car and how high you can pump up that savings account. I predict that the longer you can hold out and not buy a new car, the easier it will be to go without one. (For full disclosure, I have two kids and two cars, so I am NOT speaking from experience, only from fantasy.)

Shortly before I gave up the car, I calculated that I was spending about $4000 a year on driving, even though I owned a very modest vehicle. Now my local transportation expenses are more like $400 a year. I have friends who still spend close to $8000 a year on cars for their families and then complain because they're in debt all the time. From a purely economic point of view, car ownership is just dumb. Also, if you live in an urban area, where distances tend to be small (< 15 mi) and transportation choices many and varied, driving a car is mostly uneccessary. Most of my trips are <5 mi, and at that distance, even the time difference between driving and riding a bike is pretty much zero. Just this evening, a friend and I left my workplace to go to a restaurant 3 miles away, he in his car and me on my bike, and we got to the front door at exactly the same time.

We are a single car family with three small kids. We were car free(ish) while our car was broken in our driveway for a week and in the shop for three weeks. It was a tough time of year to be car free, but even with three small kids in the suburbs it was doable. I don't think it's something we would choose at this point in our lives, but if not for the kids I think it would be great. If you're in a position to try it I say go for it, it was a valuable experience for us.

Whilst on the subject of carfree travel...happened to notice something...Google Maps has added a couple of nice new options, it has the option to "avoid highways" by checking that box it will take you away from the Interstates, it doesn't however take you off of all major roads. Also at least in the UK it also allows you to check the option for "take Public Transit"...SWEET!

Aaron:)

Going carless may seem scary... people seem way too chained to them. I told myself even if I did own a car, I'd probably still bike to work every day. :)

I went carless too not by choice, to be honest. My ex got it when we split up, and in exchange, I got all the furniture and the cats. Then again, he needed the car, I did not. I bought a bike and now walking to work or taking the bus is much too boring. I don't worry about being low on gas. I don't worry about finding and paying for parking. I also don't worry about watching my weight. I can pretty much eat anything (within reason, say no to 3000 calorie burgers!), and work it all off in a day. :)

IOW, you drive pretty much the way you ride a bike! :D

Me too. I had to drive a friend in his car across town. I took my usual route, which included residential streets and even a couple alleys and a parking lot. My friend, who has lived here his whole life, said, "Where the hell are we? This is a stupid route. It's the same way you'd go if you were riding your bike, isn't it?"

If you have significant others, its often a great idea to at least familiarize them with your most common routes, such as a commute or favored route. As a teen I did this with my Mom, and as a husband, did it with my ex. Otherwise they will be clueless and if they need to find you, they won't know where to look.

Glad to see my thread is still alive! Just checking in with an update. Almost a month later and still haven't had the car fixed. Just made the last payment on it (ironic, isn't it?) and getting ready to sell it. Car free has been relatively easy except for groceries (I'm helped by my giant Kelty Coyote hiking backpack that I never actually used for hiking). Altogether, it's going pretty well. I have a gas station near my home, and I'm glad to look at their price sign daily with a measure of disconnection (though yes, I know, the gas price affects food and consumer products).

That is good to hear. I have a child trailer I use to get groceries with. If you get one with a jogging handle, you can roll it into the store and use it as a grocery cart too. Or you might even consider grocery bag panniers. I have those too and use them for smaller trips where I don't need the trailer.

Glad to see my thread is still alive! Just checking in with an update. Almost a month later and still haven't had the car fixed. Just made the last payment on it (ironic, isn't it?) and getting ready to sell it. Car free has been relatively easy except for groceries (I'm helped by my giant Kelty Coyote hiking backpack that I never actually used for hiking). Altogether, it's going pretty well. I have a gas station near my home, and I'm glad to look at their price sign daily with a measure of disconnection (though yes, I know, the gas price affects food and consumer products).

I'm glad it's going well for you. And yes, the up-side to high gas prices is that contented feeling when you pedal past the gas station.

Will you get much when you sell the car? Maybe you'll think about buying a trailer or one of the many other systems for hauling larger cargoes on a bicycle.

What is the gas price ? Here it is approx $2.

What is the gas price ? Here it is approx $2.
per liter or gallon?

Will you get much when you sell the car?

HAHAHAHA. Not for that piece of crap. Probably enough for a trailer, though.
Actually, last week I tried using Peapod for my groceries. Good times, but what about environmental guilt? Is one dude driving a truck, delivering groceries around the city, greener than a bunch of folks individually shopping in cars?

If a commercial route is reasonably well laid out and the population is relatively dense, commercial delivery is not bad at all. In a low density area, it's probably about the same or a bit worse than cars.

The trick with individual car trips is that the average vehicle in the US only gets around 20 mpg. Plus, the individual trips are (typically) an out and back route. So on a good commercial route, the net mileage *should* come out to 50% or less miles than if the individuals all made the trip separately. If the truck is less polluting than a car, it doesn't have to be a very efficient route at all before you see wins.

Unfortunately, in a low density area, it's hard to do as well off commercial delivery.

HAHAHAHA. Not for that piece of crap. Probably enough for a trailer, though.
Actually, last week I tried using Peapod for my groceries. Good times, but what about environmental guilt? Is one dude driving a truck, delivering groceries around the city, greener than a bunch of folks individually shopping in cars?

Well, delivery is probably better than driving, but the bike with trailer would clearly beat both. There's no surcharge or mininum purchase, and you can more easily pick out the brands you want and shop for sale prices. Plus, it always feels good to know that I did something on my own.

I do all my shopping with just a bicycle and a backpack, but I'm a single person with stores galore in easy riding distance and even walking distance. I do walk sometimes for bulky purchases. And I'm not above getting a ride on very rare occasions-- like next week when I have to buy 50 and 55 pound dumbbells. I probably couldn't ride with 105 pounds on my back, and I know for sure that my backpack would burst! :eek:

I've tried googling info on Peapod truck mileage, but didn't find much. However, I did find an article talking about their computerized delivery system and how it makes it all more efficient (supposing that efficiency = less fuel burned = more profit for them). And I do live in a high density area. So it seems cool for now, though someday I may try a trailer.

Just another update- sold my car today and am now *officially* car-free (though I wasn't driving it before)! Now if I can only get out of that parking space lease. . .
P.S. To whoever asked. . . gas in my neighborhood is now 3.78/gal.; much more downtown.

I feel same way about the whole car thing. I am looking to get rid of mine in next few weeks, Kinda scared, but it will be interesting.