IMAGINE
On your way home from work, you want to pick up some things for dinner. Fresh foods, and just what you need for that night. You choose a supermarket or farmers’ market on the way home, fill up your reusable bag with some items, and walk or take the subway home.
You have not filled up the car with a week’s worth of food.
You do not have a house full of food that could go bad before you even remember you bought it.
One of my dreams, once I move to New York City, is to live a car free life. (And to buy groceries as I need them.)
A CAR FREE LIFE CAN HAPPEN
Plenty of other bloggers have done it. Leo Babauta. And Tammy Strobel. Yes, of course it’s easier to live this kind of existence in a city, but it’s possible to at least downsize or mostly use a bike or carpool even out in the suburbs or the country.
I’m not saying it’s easy. Just possible.
One of the reasons I’ve wanted to move to the city is to get rid of my car. I started driving when I was 16, and bought my first car at 22. While the freedom of having my own vehicle to pick up and go wherever I want is great, it’s also sometimes a huge pain.
Like last week when I had to take my car in to get a recall notification checked out.
Or when I need to pay the insurance each month. And fill it with gas every week.
THE FREEDOM OF LIVING CAR FREE
It’s funny. In America it’s seen as a freedom to own a car. We can go wherever we want – the whole world (or a few countries, really), are fully open for us to explore.
We just hop in, start the car…and go.
But as freeing as that feels, there are so many burdens to having a car, like the costs and maintenance and parking. But actually, when you think about it, there’s great freedom to living without a car, especially in a city with decent public transit.
You can walk or bike or take public transportation to many places, and still go wherever you choose.
While you’re riding the bus or the subway or the train, you can get things done that normally you feel you don’t have time for – blogging, or reading, or getting more sleep. Sure beats sitting in traffic.
Your costs lower, usually.
And if you really want to drive somewhere that you can’t get to easily? Rent a car, or use Zip Car. With the money you save on insurance and upkeep and gas, you should have more than enough money to rent a car once in a while.
It’s not for everyone. Not everyone can make this choice – they either do need a car, or can’t afford one, or have always lived without one and never thought twice.
I dream of the day that I sell my car, hand over my title, and wipe my hands clean of a lot of stress, aggravation, and money.
That car free life is coming. I can feel it.
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{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }
It sounds pretty cool and something that CAN be done in NYC! It would definitely mean groceries on a daily basis (which also has it’s own appeal). I live just far enough away that I need one – and I shop and cook weekly.
However, my sister moved 3 doors down and we often combine our errands. I’ll be honest and admit that we do it because we just enjoy each other’s company – but it DOES save, too!
I like that you and your sister combine errands. It’s always fun to run errands with other people, and then you save money on gas too. That’s a great idea.
Good point. Owning a car can lead to a lot of stress and expenditures. However, not having a car in some parts of the USA can be pretty difficult. For example, I used to work downtown Milwaukee, WI and wanted to take public transportation for the sake of the environment and for my own sake; but there was only one route that would go there and very infrequently. Considering the fact that I lived about fifteen minutes from my work, there should have been more options at my disposal. Also, there are social “issues” with taking public transportation, although I am sure that it is unique to each city (and people!), but some of my co-workers did not approve of my initiative to ride the bus. I did not care, but I made me think about those peoples’ priorities. It is unfortunate that there are people who believe that riding public transportation is below them.
My husband and I just moved to Lviv, Ukraine (my hometown and the land of his grandparents). The transportation system is definitely a lot better here. There are buses, trams and trolleys with an abundance of passengers on them. The whole city is very pedestrian friendly. We can walk everywhere and love it!
I know what you mean, and have felt that sentiment from others too. When I lived in Burlington, Vermont, I made a point to only use my bike and the bus (and my feet) to get to work, but to run errands or visit friends, I would drive. People sometimes worried about my safety, but I knew that I was totally fine, and probably better off in many ways.
Thanks so much for your comment. I am glad to hear your new city is so pedestrian friendly.
Great post! Certainly wouldn’t work for me currently, but Brian and I got rid of one of our cars last year and it was a great decision. Once in a blue moon I wish we had 2 cars, but generally it’s perfect. We spend less money, we spend more time together and we only have to clean off one car when it snows!
Thanks, Emily! Love that you and Brian share just one car. I would imagine most of the time you were going places, you’d want to go together anyway. (And the thought of only clearing off one car after some snow makes it even better.)
We’ve been a car-free family for 10 years now.We’re actually discussing buying a van with our income tax return but owning a car has so many cons and it’s not an easy decision to make.There is some lack of freedom we have not owning a car .We need to live close to a bus route, which hinders our ability to have a sustainable homestead we dream of having. Family outings are not easy for a car-free family of 8! These are the only 2 negative things about being car-free we’ve found. Oh…and that I really hate walking in winter
Oh, wow. That’s excellent, especially since you’re trying to live more sustainably on your homestead. Very cool.
I guess it’ll really come down to the pros and cons, and whether it’s worth it in the end. I’ll be curious to hear what you decide.
Thanks so much for stopping by!