Going Carless  Going Carless

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Why You Don’t Want a Car

The thought of not having a car strikes most Americans as terrifying. Yet there are many advantages:
  1. No more being ripped off by car dealers and their phony warrantees where you have to agree to let them change your oil for over $100.00 USD a pop.
  2. No more being ripped off by car insurance companies that double your rates when you make a claim.
  3. No more letting the fat cats at Exxon rip you off for gasoline and oil.
  4. No more letting dictators in oil-exporting countries rip you off.
  5. No more being ripped of by the local repair and collision garages.
  6. No more being ripped off for parking.
  7. No more wasted hours looking for a parking space.
  8. No more back seat and trunk full of crap left there by other people.
  9. No more hit and runs in the super market parking lot.
  10. No more watching your $30,000.00 USD beauty gradually turn into a pile of rust.
  11. No more licence fees and gas tax for the government to waste.
  12. No more contributing to greenhouse gas emissions and hence global warming and freakish weather like Hurricane Katrina.
  13. No more playing chauffeur to your kids. You are turning them into couch potatoes.
  14. No more having your car stolen and trashed by a gang of teens.

Alternatives

What are your options for going carless?
  1. Walk.
  2. Bike.
  3. Public transport.
  4. Hitchhike. There are still parts of the world where this is considered safe.
  5. Get a ride with some else going your way, e.g. shopping.
  6. Car pooling.
  7. Human-powered vehicle.
  8. Electric car.
  9. Taxi. For most people, doing the same amount of travel as they do by car with taxis is actually cheaper when you add in all the expenses.
  10. Occasional car rental — rent the kind of vehicle you need just for the occasion, a snappy sports car, a camper, an SUV (Sport Utility Vehicle), a moving van.
  11. Vehicle timeshare.
What are your options for going going with less car?
  1. Smaller or more fuel efficient vehicle.
  2. Hydrid car.
  3. Keep your car, but replace some of your transportation.
  4. Trip batching, e. g. do your grocery shopping only every two weeks rather than daily.
  5. Buy an extra vehicle specialised for commuting.
  6. Cut your driving commitments. Let others make their own way.
Pick a wide mixture of ways to replace your private car or cut down car use.

My Personal Story

I gave away my near-new Canadian-built Renault-12 in 1975, largely because I was sick to the teeth with the crooked dealership that I bought it from and because of by blossoming concern for the environment. I have not owned one since. At one point, I commuted by bicycle 32.19 km (20 miles) each way to work. That built my health up and enabled me to survive HIV which killed nearly everyone else who got it in 1985.

Fast Bicycles

I used to live on Quadra Island. A fellow islander Sam Whittingham is the world’s fastest cyclist, 132.45 km/hr (82.30 mph), riding an enclosed recumbent bike designed by Georgi Georgiev of Varna on nearby Gabriola Island.

Sam Whittingham
Sam Whittingham

Beyondbikes.com

carfree.com
Why Refrigerators Are More Efficient Than Cars
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