Just wondering, im not trying to be rude. Im scared to drive and i dont live near buses, nor do i want to pay someone to drive me? maybe i should save up for a bike?
I stumbled across this community and now im curious…
anyways how do you all get places?
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For one thing, I just do it less than someone with the wealth and privilege to operate a private vehicle. A lot of trips can just be done without, without any hardship at all. But clearly you’ve already done that.
I walk, bike, and take busses. I have always walked and biked. The taking busses had to wait until I moved to Chicago, mostly, though I did take a few even in South Dakota.
I live in Munich.
I bike to work. It is only 14 kilometers (about 9 miles).
If the road is to icy to cope with studded tyres, I take the fast commuter train… it is a tad slower, because bikes are often more efficient.
BTW I have doing that since the last 15 years and the last five jobs, in five towns or cities. That may shock you, but I am 58, and never had a car.
To go to places farther away, I use the train. We have a decent train system here (though it’s not as good as Japan’s or Switzerland’s - these countries lack bribe money from the car industry.)
I use the train for travel and vacation. I have been in a large part of Europe by train, including Greece. For example, in the last years, me and my partner traveled to Scotland, Netherlands, Croatia and Slovenia, and to Denmark - by night train.
BTW it also saves a ton of money. Cars are fucking expensive. In the last ten years, I spent about 3000 € on bikes (I have two, a normal trecking bike and a recumbent one), and about 1200 € on professional maintenance (I repair and clean most stuff myself, but I let look a bike mechanic for it every year, for safety and because it saves time and unplanned repairs). So, my costs are about 420 € per year.
Right now, by ebike. In the past I have walked, ridden a regular bike or taken the bus. I do about 100 kilometers a week on my ebike, maybe 5 on my regular bike for errands within town, if I don’t just walk, and also occasionally use the bus or train.
Rural or urban, I have always prioritized living somewhere where I can easily get to where I need to be, by using either public or active transport. I will also happily use digital alternatives like online grocery shopping etc. when it makes sense to. I grew up somewhere super rural (for Denmark) and even did part of my high school online, because doing it offline would have required commuting 3-4 hours by bus or 1,5 by car in total, each and every day. Right now I live in a small Danish town with about 10k inhabitants, with busses and trains, and close enough to the countryside that I was able to find a place to keep our two ponies within biking distance.
I’m in my early thirties and don’t even have a driver’s license.
I live in a small city in England.
Mainly, I walk. When I can go by bike path, I cycle. About once a week, I drive somewhere.
At some point, I’ll sell the car.
So you’re paying what 500 700 quids a year insurance for once a week driving? Been a while I lived in England, what’s the going rate these days?
Most of us drive cars to get around. This community is more a resentment of the fact we HAVE to rely on cars (depending on where you live).
In my neck of the woods public transport is a joke, and the urban sprawl means living in the city is only for the wealthy so unfortunately, I do have to rely on a car, but I hate that and I’d like to see that changed. That’s why I’m part of this community.
Im lucky to live in NYC so I use the subway, for other parts of this country I reccomend an ebike or even an escooter depending on your needs
Public transit, occasionally car. I have a compact for when I absolutely need it for gigs and such
I‘m in a city in Europe and I don’t own a car. I commute by bike. It’s around 11 km from home and it takes me around 40 minutes.
I don’t care if it rains or snows. I always carry a set of waterproof pants and raincoat in my bike pack; helmet keeps my head mostly dry. At work I have a complete spare set of clothes which I almost never actually use.
In winter it gets to a few degrees Celsius below zero but I never had any problems with temperature. The exercise keeps me warm.
In some rare occasions (this winter for example) it snows a lot and at some point the bike lanes become unusable. Then I have to take the public transport.
My bike was expensive. It has all the bells and whistles: hydraulic disk brakes, lights with dynamo, hub gear, belt drive, luggage rack. You can probably get a cheaper one and you don’t really need all those treats.
But I had very little problems over the years and had do almost zero maintenance. I also always carry a minimal set of tools in a pouch attached to the chassis, in case I have to patch a tyre.
The exercise and freedom of biking makes me arrive to places happy and full of energy. I usually listen to audiobooks, podcasts or music on the way so it’s fun and I usually look forward to it.
You have to be deliberate about where you live. If you don’t want to be car dependent, you have to move somewhere that isn’t car dependent or you’re gonna have a Bad Time™.
I grew up in a car-dependent suburban shithole called Langley, and moved to Vancouver at the earliest opportunity where I could commute via transit, scooter, or bike. Every time I moved after that (7 different cities so far) it’s been to places where I can safely walk, cycle, and/or take transit because not being car-dependent was a high priority for me.
I should also point out that this decision, while resulting in higher rent & mortgages than if I’d chosen suburban life, has meant I’ve not spent the roughly $10k annually to maintain a car, which meant that I could afford a to buy a good-sized home in a bike-friendly city. We expect to pay off the mortgage this year.
Car-free really is what it says on the tin: freedom.
You have to be deliberate about where you live. If you don’t want to be car dependent, you have to move somewhere that isn’t car dependent or you’re gonna have a Bad Time™.
This. The two most important places are the home and the workplace. It is ideal if average daily commuting is less than one hour. But you can factor in that healthy humans positively need about one hour of daily excercise per day, so you can subtract that as gym time.
Everything else flows from chosing the right places and making it a priority to be able to get there either by bike or public transport.
Having done that, you will invariably find that you do not spend more time on errands and getting around than people which own a car. Inhabitants of Copenhagen or Amsterdam do not spent more time commuting than inhabitants if Houston or Los Angeles.
It is also great to chose a place with a community which has local social interactions. Most humans need that, too.
please tell ishmael I said hi.
You know, I read that book as a kid 'cause my grandmother came to visit annoyed that I’d published a book and not told her. I think was 17 at the time.
It was one of those books that really got to me though. It changed my entire worldview and I still think of it from time to time. I’m now 46.
found it in a cabin we rented in 1998? maybe 99? profoundly changed the way I look at the world.
makes me wonder how the real quinn deals with the impact he had…
Personally I get around by ebike or car. My work is nearly 15kms away, so walking isn’t feasible but it’s a great distance for ebike . And public transport isn’t an option. I bike a good chunk of the time, but occasionally have to pick up stuff for my job and most weeks I visit my parents, which are over 60kms away and regularly need help now that they’re getting older. So I drive at least once a week and don’t think there’s a realistic way around it with my current job.
Walk, transit, bike, ebike. Not in that order, but I was deliberate about where I live, so I can get groceries or go out to do stuff without driving.
Living in the right spot is crucial. We cant all live in a proper walkable neighborhood becase well mostly because north america won’t build that at the scale its desired, but even ensuring you’re close to the right strip mall or shopping center is better than nothing.
If your local area is conducive to bikes, that’s a great option. Really, though, sometimes driving is the only option. I don’t think anyone’s really advocating for ditching cars everywhere, but rather, promoting walkable cities and bike infrastructure and less of a reliance on cars where it’s not (or shouldn’t be) actually necessary.
Deliberately lived car free for 4 yeaes here in Australia, choose to live somewhere with better public transport and walking distance to shopping/services. Had a large shopping centre with doctors, dentist, chemist, groceries and a bazillion speciality shops across the road. Walking, PT, an e-scooter and bicycle were all we needed. I worked from home, my parter used her e-scooter for her 4km round trip to work. Busses really suck, they’re what cities use when thy have run out of ideas, we used the light and heavy rail often.
Fuck cars :)
Bicycling, walking. Sometimes bus/train.
Usually I do:
Walking: ≤1 km, occassionally up to 5 km.
Bicycling: 1-15 km*
Bus: 5-25 km
Train: ≥25-1,000 km (if it takes more than 4 hours total, I prefer a night train).* You can take a bike on the train here, usually a foldable one. I’ve never done it, but you could then take the train range plus 5 km - foldables aren’t handy for loong distances. Great for within the city, though. Alternatively, you park a bike near the station, and at the end stop, rent a bike from the station.
I don’t usually use a ferry for larger distances, but if it’s for the night, I love it.
I only fly if the distance is further than 1,000 km.
