“Car Free” Archive
Jan
28
First off, thanks to everyone who has been checking in, anxiously awaiting an update. I sincerely appreciate your loyalty to the blog, particularly your encouraging comments. The loyal readers of this blog are what keep me motivated to continue telling my story.
So as most folks are aware, in early December I made one of the more dramatic lifestyle changes I’ve made thus far: I got rid of my car. I described my motivation in detail in an earlier post, but I will summarize here:
- Reduce Expenses
- Reduce Expenses
- Reduce Expenses
- Do my part for the environment
During the first 45 days, I have done pretty well at reducing expenses as a result of turning in my leased car. I estimated that I was spending between $180-$225 on gas each month, so I realized an immediate savings once the car was gone. In addition, I am saving about $95 per month for auto insurance, which again was an immediate savings. Conversely, because the car was leased I still own Honda Finance 5 more months of payments. As such, I won’t see the stellar savings until the summer, when gas in my humble opinion is likely to reach $4/gallon.
So, how is life without a car you ask? I’ve found that living without a car in a city like Seattle–which has good but not great public transportation–is quite easy to do and frankly fairly enjoyable. Other than the obvious expense reduction there have been a number of noticeable things that have come about as a result of living car-free:
1) I Get More Exercise
I walk a lot of places now that I don’t have a car. My neighborhood, according to Walkscore.com (and I agree) is fairly walkable, meaning banks, grocery stores, drugstores, public transportation etc., is all within a reasonable walking distance. I read somewhere that in order to lose weight, in addition to regular aerobic exercise, you should take at least 10K steps per day. With all the walking I do at work, on the way to work and on the way to the bus each day, I’m hitting nearly 13K steps per day, which makes me happy.
2) Other Expenses are Down
One thing I have noticed since having to rely on public transportation or the occasional Flexcar is that I spend significantly less money on things like groceries and household items. The reason is quite simple: I can only buy what I carry, so I only buy what I NEED. I think walking to your local grocery store, if practical, will cause you to be a lot more deliberate about your purchases and I will guarantee that you will see the savings in your wallet.
3) Less Stressed and More Focused At Work
Traffic here in Seattle is absolutely horrible, particularly the route I was forced to take each day to work. I found that by the time I dealt with traffic, drivers who didn’t know how to merge and–incredibly given I live in Seattle–how to drive properly in the rain, I was very stressed out and angry by the time I got to work. It would often take me an hour or so to cool down and be able to focus on the events of the day (also quite stressful). Now I find myself able to read, listen to my iPod or simply zone out on the way to work. I have about a 10 minute walk from the bus stop to my office, and by the time I arrive I am nice and relaxed and ready to focus.
Some of you might be wondering–and I thought about this myself–if I will ever own a car again. The answer to that question is yes. For the time being and for the foreseeable future I will live without one. That said, when I do buy another car, it will be something much more practical, fuel efficient and affordable.
Dec
17
As I announced last week, I am officially living car free loving every moment of it. Living without a car is a major lifestyle change and may or may not fit with your particular lifestyle, family situation or living situation. There were a few key considerations for me, all of which pointed in the direction of living without a car.
Public Transportation to Work
First and foremost, I needed to have reliable and accessible public transportation to work. Luckily I have several bus lines literally steps from my apartment, two of which connect to a bus that takes me directly to my place of employment; the other provide connections that could also get me to work in a jam.
So, from a work perspective, living without a car was an absolute possibility.
Access to Car Sharing and Other Alternatives
Although the ultimate goal is to live without a car, I knew there would be those occasions where I would absolutely need a car. Family visits, emergency trips to the veterinarian, doctor visits to areas not served by public transport would all require access to a car. To solve that problem, I decided I would use a combination of car sharing and rental cars as these situations come up.
Luckily Seattle has a very extensive car sharing network through Flexcar, several of which are within walking distance of my apartment. In addition, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, which offers 50% of weekend rentals, has several locations nearby; they even pick you up.
Access to Parks, Grocery Stores, Restaurants, Banks Etc.
Fortunately, I live in a neighborhood that is very walkable in that most of what I need in terms of services is within walking distance of my apartment. If you are curious about the ‘walkability‘ of the neighborhood you live in, you can check out Walkscore.com. It is a great site and I used my own walk score to determine whether or not I could live without a car. My neighborhood scored an 85 out of 100, which according to Walkscore’s scoring definitions, indicates I could absolutely live without a car; I would agree with their assessment.
These aren’t the only considerations when contemplating a life without a car but they were the most important factors in my decision to go car-free, other than the obvious savings each month.
Regardless of whether or not living without a car is the right choice for you, I would encourage everyone to make better use of public transportation. Since using the bus as my primary transport, I have found myself to be A LOT less stressed out and my days are clearly more structured.
Dec
14
In a post from many months ago–time flies when you are paying off debt–I mentioned I would moving to a car free lifestyle, free of car payments, insurance payments and the expense of $3.50 gallons of gasoline. Well, I am happy to announce that as of December 7th, I am officially living without a car and I couldn’t be happier about it.
In terms of dollar savings, I should save close to $600 per month, net of any FlexCar usage each month:
| Expense Item (Monthly) | Amount |
| Car Payment | $464.61 |
| Insurance | $89.00 |
| Gas Purchases | $175.00 |
| FlexCar Usage | ($125.00) |
| TOTAL MONTHLY SAVINGS | $603.61 |
In addition to the ‘direct’ savings every month, I think there will be many ‘indirect’ dollars saved as a result of living car free. What I mean by ‘indirect’ is that there will be no impulse buys or overbuying at the grocery stores since I will have to carry my groceries on the bus or walk from the store; I’ll only have room for what is on my list. In addition, I expect to eat out a lot less as a result of not having a car. The bottom line is that living without a car should really jumpstart my effort to create and live on a budget, build back an emergency fund, and get current on my student loans (I had fallen a month behind or so in recent months).
I’ll be talking more about my choice to live without a car, including my thoughts about whether a car free lifestyle may be right for you and what resources are available to help you decide. In the meantime, I’ll be happily riding the bus and living a more structured life going forward.
Oct
2
Starting this Friday, October 5th, I will be starting the ‘One Less Car Challenge’ sponsored by the City of Seattle, whereby I will attempt to not drive my car at all for a month, with the exception of emergencies.
Although I have been carpooling and taking the bus a lot more often over the past two months since announcing I would move to a 100% car-free lifestyle next year, I have not gone a month without driving my car, so this will truly be a good challenge for me.
There are some nice rewards if I can successfully complete the challenge:
- $50 in Flexcar credit, of which I am already a member and active user
- Discounted membership to the Cascade Bicycle Club, the largest bicycle club in the nation, which also happens to be here in Seattle. I’ve yet to buy a bike, but this would be a nice benefit for sure.
Other than the obvious rewards, there are likely to be some other very tangible benefits to my body and my pocketbook:
- Taking the bus will mean more walking from point to point. This should keep me in shape or even help me get into better shape. I’ve been slacking from my diet and exercise program lately and need to get back on track. This would be a good catalyst/supplement.
- Without the availability of a car at my disposal, any impulsive or wasteful spending or temptation to spend will be eliminated. In addition, I will only buy those grocery items I need AND can carry home on the bus. This should keep me healthy and honest.
- I will save close to $200 for the month in gas related to my commuting and errand running. This is probably the BEST benefit of all, at least in the context of debt repayment.
I am a very strong believer in the concept of car-sharing through FlexCar, so if you live in any of the following cities please contact me and I can send you a referral:
Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Washington D.C., Atlanta, Gainesville, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Columbus, Milwaukee or Phoenix
Wish me luck on my challenge. I am going to create a page on the blog to specifically track and detail the challenge so I don’t create too much clutter on the blog.
Jul
19
First off let me apologize again for the lack of posting. My laptop has been in the hands of the Toshiba repair folks but luckily my warranty hadn’t expired just yet (two weeks left) and the repairs were free.
So without further ado, here comes some fresh content for all you loyal readers. I usually don’t break up my posts but since this a very long post, but one I think most people will find interesting, I’ve included a “More” tag so your screen isn’t completely filled by this post.
While browsing the aisles at the public library–Seattle has an amazing public library system–I came across a book that may change the way I live my life going forward. The title you ask…..How to Live Well Without a Car: Save Money, Breathe Easier and Get More Mileage Out of Life.
The book is part ‘How-To’ but mostly ‘Why You Should’ go car-free, with the crux of the argument focusing on the true expense of owning a car. Adding in insurance costs, fuel costs and maintenance costs to my car payment and I have estimated it costs me between $700-$750 per month to support my car habit. OUCH!
