HOusehold with no car-past 30 yrs.

[DebW]

In some urban areas, you can buy into the Zipcar program. It's like shared cars sited around town with self-serve access.

[Triskeliongirl]

i think if I lived in an urban center I would do the same thing as you. Even now, we recently went from being a 2 car family to a 1 car family, with 1 VERY OLD car at that. Our car is too old to make long trips anymore, has no heat or AC, etc. but I was surprised to learn how inexpensive it is to rent a car. We are taking a trip to New Orleans in April, and rented a full size car for only $20 a day. We bike to work, but then use our car on the weekend to drive out to the country for our club bike rides. I used to work in Woods Hole every summer, and for about 10 years we'd live car free in the summer. Its great when the weather is great, but it is tough when its raining a lot, or if someone is sick or injured.

[kat_h]

I didn't have a car when I lived in England or Germany or Montreal, but whenever I'm home I have one. I find it amusing that I bike to work (10 k) whenever the wind isn't too bad but my husband always drives to where he works (2 k.)

[Triskeliongirl]

I don't know much about zipcar, but for you students out there I know many college campuses have car rental programs. This both discourages students from having cars on campus (and saves on parking problems), and makes it easy for them to rent when they need to. At Wellesley, there is a parking lot full of these vehicles, and for a modest annual fee students can buy into a program that lets them use these vehicles for routine errands, etc. At MIT, my son's fraternity needed to drive to a retreat in Canada, and the school also arranged vehicles for them to use. This is very impt. for younger students that often have difficulty renting from commerical vendors, and something both my kids have taken advantage of (cuz there is no way we can buy them both cars and send them to MIT and Wellesley, heck that is why we also have to drive one broken down old car.......).

I did live car free for many years as a student in Cambridge MA as well, just cuz it cost so damn much even for a parking space. I lived in an apt. complex where the you had to pay almost as much to rent a parking space as an entire apt, so I bought my first nice touring bike instead......... In a city with good public transportation, it can work fine, even in bad weather. THe problem is cities without good publ. transp.

[KnottedYet]

If someone can figure out how to be a single mom and share carpool duties, take injured and sick children and dogs to the doctors, rush from work to school/hospital when child is in trouble, haul child and suitcases to grandma's, etc without a car or good taxi system, I'd love to know.

Sometimes I really miss the years I didn't have a car and did everything by bike and bus. (but I don't miss the way I had to impose on my friends to help me move or take me places when I couldn't manage by bike or bus. it's nice to be able to return the favors now)

[mimitabby]

Knot, it won't be long!

but living where you live it would be very hard to be car free! our metropolitan areas are not set up for car free living. And every time they start to plan something (for a few lucky and elite) it gets dropped.

Where we live it will be marginal being car free. It means you have to depend on stores that are nearby instead of stores you like the produce at.
I loved my time staying in Italian cities, where you could find anything you needed within walking distance of your house. and every day; all the women go out and go shopping; and therefore have fresh produce every single day.
even obscure things, like watch batteries; there were little stores nearby that carried them.

at least at my house there is a nearby bus line.
I'm still chained to my car; i'm afraid.

[Triskeliongirl]

I will add that even for us to make the transition from 2 to 1 car required becoming empty nesters. Indeed, its hard to be a parent without a car....... But again venue matters. If everything you need is in walking distance or you live in a city with great mass transit (like NYC or Boston) I can see doing it.