Living Car Free - Just joined the ranks.

I moved to the Detroit area last weekend and away from my car. The Michigan winters have me scared. I have no job yet, so buying the little things that help most people commute in the winter is out of the question. Right now, I'm looking at 6 to 7 miles one way to school, 3 miles to the library, and I'm fortunately within walking distance of grocery stores.

Nervous as hell is the order of the day but looking forward to the challenges of not having a car. :thumb:

Welcome to the carfree ranks and welcome to Michigan! :)

I grew up in Highland Park, and I've also been carfree in Jackson and currently Lansing. For the last 7 years or so I've been using my bike all year here in Lansing, and this has worked well for me. Our climate is actually pretty good here in Michigan...it's never too hot in the winter or too cold in the summer. ;)

Seriously, it is a pretty good climate. I miss the sun in the dark winter months, but being outside on the bike makes the gloom more tolerable, IMO.

I assume you men that you have cold weather clothing, but you can't afford new bike equipment right now, such as studded tires. Well, you can get along fine without the studded tires if you have to. Major streets are plowed quickly. Side streets are more of a challenge. There might be times when you have to get off and walk on small rutted streets. Going uphill can also be a problem if you're not getting good traction on your drive wheel.

When you can spare the money, get good lights first. A lot more winter riding is done in the dark. Already it's dark by 5:30 here in Lansing. :( For $30 to $50 you should be able to get a decent little LED front white light and a red rear blinky. Plaznetbike Super Flash is a popular brand right now, but there are others.

I moved to the Detroit area last weekend and away from my car. The Michigan winters have me scared. I have no job yet, so buying the little things that help most people commute in the winter is out of the question. Right now, I'm looking at 6 to 7 miles one way to school, 3 miles to the library, and I'm fortunately within walking distance of grocery stores.

Nervous as hell is the order of the day but looking forward to the challenges of not having a car. :thumb:

Ther's nothing to be afraid about. Go on the internet and start downloading the bus schedules one after another. Try to figure out how much time it will take you to arrive at the stop 10 minutes before the bus arrives. Once you arrive at your destination, do the same but in the opposite direction.

I've been taking public transit for years and have just recently started actually at those schedules. Unless your buses arrive every 15 minutes, it really saves time to use the schedule.

The three things you need to buy are a warm ski mask, thick gloves and warm boots. You'll do fine.