Carless

[Sunset]

I gave up riding my bike about 15 years ago, around here it's a quick way to die from Texter's.
If our area was truly bike friendly and not just a painted line on the same width of road, then a 3 wheeled bike with a basket in back would be great.

I used to live close to a grocery store, and would walk there sometimes.
Walking to a grocery store sounds great, but walking back with 2 gallons of milk and some cans of other food, really kills the joy of the walk back home.

 

[RobbieB]

Inspired by Charlton Heston;

I'll give up my car when they pry my cold dead fingers off the steering wheel

 

[Ronstar]

I don't envision a time when I'll ever be pickuptruckless, let alone carless. We live in suburbia and the roads around here don't have shoulders, let alone sidewalks. If I tried to ride a bicycle I'd have a life expectancy of about twenty minutes, if that. So bicycles are out for us.

At the moment DW is out overnight for babysitting the two grandnephews and grandniece with the car and if I need anything I'll of course take the pickup. On a good day the pickup gets 18 mpg so that is the secondary vehicle and the Honda is the daily driver. I long ago decided that a pickup truck with a shell over the bed is for me the ideal 2nd vehicle, not the least because it's great for hauling radio control model airplanes to the flying site without having to take the wings off. Very few cars can do that and even those require other compromises that I don't wish to make. And if one owns a house it is hard to beat the convenience of having a pickup in the garage for the occasional large, bulky or heavy item.

I am the same way. Always thought that there was no way I could go pickuptruckless. I haul things a couple times a week. But lately I've thought about years down the road when it becomes impractical for us to have the 3 vehicles we have now. DW's car, my truck, my jeep.

When the time comes, the truck or the jeep will have to go. It's going to be a tough decision. One thought is to sell the truck and buy a small foldable trailer for rare days when I need to haul something.

 

[DrRoy]

We RE'd in 2017. Within about 6 months we realized that we really didn't need 2 cars any more so we went to 1. We figured if we got into a situation where we had a conflict then one of us could Uber. Hasn't happened yet. The closest we have been is where one of us drops the other off to use the car and picks them up later.

 

[old medic]

I don't envision a time when I'll ever be pickuptruckless, let alone carless.

That is us, always had a pickup since 1985. If we ever went to one vehicle it would be a truck. We are out in the country, but lucky enough to have a well-stocked country store a mile away. Closest restaurant about 15 miles, nothing large retailer under 25 miles away. There is no buses, Uber or Taxi's to speak of. There is a county Public Transportation Service that you can make arrangements with. They had tried a regular timed bus route that closed after a year.
Delivery... Even with Amazon Primes increase, it is worth having to save driving and wear and tear.

 

[MarieIG]

Sorry for reviving this old thread but some good thoughts init already....

Anyone considering or gone carless recently? Seems you can have almost anything delivered these days. Quick access to things like Uber for spur of the moment trips to shops and around town.

Just thinking how going from current situation of one car to no car if spouse and I are no longer working would work out. $1000 a year insurance used towards Uber rides to places. Have groceries delivered.
Sell the current like new car and stick 30k in the bank. Seems that would go a long way towards car rentals when needed for out of town trips perhaps.

Any thoughts on this plan... crazy?

Not crazy, but it really depends on the availability of public transportation.

 

[EastWest Gal]

Look into local public transportation, including ride-sharing for seniors. In metro areas, it can be an inexpensive alternative. In Philadelphia, the SEPTA system is free for those over 65, and even nearby systems are 50% off.

Other metro areas have similar systems. We won’t be car-less for many years. We transport keyboards, amps, and percussion equipment frequently. Timpani, vibraphones and marimbas do not fit into Ubers

 

[Music Lover]

I agree. I have floating stuff in my tap water so I buy 24pk cases of bottled water. Not sure how i'm doing that with a bike. I go thru a minimum of 4 bottles per day. Frozen pizzas would not be good either during Summer months. I guess you could get some stuff delivered and get the rest with the bike.

Instead of cases of bottled water, get a water dispenser that uses 5 gallon jugs. This is just a cheap random example, but there are dozens to choose from. Many of them will also cool or heat the water:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Avalon-...-Energy-Star-Approved-A1WATERCOOLER/301584280

 

[Badger]

Going carless at 74 and 75 would be a possibility as long as: 1. My wife gave up her only form of recreation of tennis that she plays 5 days a week and often requires going to matches that are frequently as much as an hour drive away, 2. we give up going for walks in the woods so I can get out of the house after 3 years of pandemic, 3. we can go to a restaurant outdoor seating area occasionally without having to drive miles to get there, 4. If our city wasn't 480 square miles large, 5. If our city didn't have one of the highest number of bicycle and pedestrian deaths/injuries in the state, 6. If various health providers that we frequently use weren't so far away, 7. etc. etc. etc.

Cheers!

 

[Andre1969]

Going carless might work for some people and, let's face it...if you live long enough, there's a good chance someone's going to take the keys away, eventually. Or the fob.

If you're in a city/suburb with excellent public transportation, close by shops, etc, it would probably work. In fact, in some cities, having a car is more of a curse than a blessing. In my personal experience, though, just about everyone I've known who doesn't have a car, has still been car-dependent. They'd either be constantly bumming rides off of friends, or have a house mate/significant other who had a car, and would let them use it at will...or drive them around regularly.

These aren't the type of people who could truly go carless, to the point they relied solely on public transport/walking and the occasional Uber. These types, if you took friends/relatives/significant others out of the equation, would go so broke using Uber that a car payment would be cheaepr for them.

In my case, i have to go into the office one day per week. I just checked Uber to see how much a ride would cost. Almost $40. So that's $80 round drip. Once a month, I go to the discount liquor store and stock up. That would be about $60 round trip. Over the course of a year, which throws in the months with 5 weeks, that comes out to around $406/mo. That's more than any car payment I've ever had, although I'm sure it's a lot less than any car payment I'll ever have in the future!

And then, there's other running around and such. I guess I could have groceries delivered...that would be cheaper than having an Uber driver take me to the store, and then another one pick me up. But still, going carless wouldn't be cheap, or convenient for me.

 

[Music Lover]

We can't go carless for several reasons.

1. The nearest bus stop from our house is about 1 mile away.

2. I play in a couple bands and I'm not carrying my bass and an amp 1 mile to the bus stop.

3. The bus stop doesn't go to the cluster of 4 grocery stores plus Costco where we buy our food so a transfer would be required. With walking it's an hour each way.

4. We have a cabin that's 90 kms away.

By the way, we just got home from 6 weeks in Mazatlan. We could easily go carless there.

 

[GravitySucks]

I haven't been able to figure out a way to have a set-up on my bike that would allow me to get a decent amount of groceries without being concerned that it would be stolen while i'm in the store. Any suggestions other than to only get one days worth of stuff at a time. I am not interested in that. That may work in California where almost every day is dry and comfortable but that doesn't work in Wisconsin.

I bought something similar to this

https://www.scheels.com/p/bontrager...730dktNkt31-c300u1SHRritW7WDOwdBoCMtMQAvD_BwE

from the Nashbar Garage (their returned items section) over 20 years ago. I can get about 5 days worth of food into it. Of course I’m not buying 10 lbs of potatoes or cases of soda/beer on those trips.
Velcros on to the rear rack and comes off quick and easy if I’m worried about it getting stolen.


As for giving up the car, I say I will when the time comes but in reality I don’t envy my daughters when it comes time for them to take my keys away.

 

[Teacher Terry]

Both my mom and FIL drove until they died at 89 and 92. A woman in my building has a dog sitting business at 90 and still drives fine. Some aren’t so lucky. Personally I will know if I am not safe anymore and will give it up voluntarily.

 

[djsander]

Our neighbors where we used to live ended up without cars. Brother and sister in early to mid 60s moved into their parents house when the parents died. They had vehicles initially, but the they didn’t. They would use taxis, Uber or neighbors to get where they needed. It worked, but not something I would want to do. Where we are now the city has a a small bus service. You call them and they pick you up and then drop you off. When your ready to return home call and they pick you up. The downside is you might have to wait 30 minutes. It doesn’t have any set routes or schedule. The cost is something like a dollar. I see it go through my neighborhood everyday. A lot of seniors ride it to and from our local senior center. As long as our local tax dollars are paying for the service I think it is great for the people who couldn’t otherwise get around.

 

[2HOTinPHX]

Going carless at 74 and 75 would be a possibility as long as: 1. My wife gave up her only form of recreation of tennis that she plays 5 days a week and often requires going to matches that are frequently as much as an hour drive away, 2. we give up going for walks in the woods so I can get out of the house after 3 years of pandemic, 3. we can go to a restaurant outdoor seating area occasionally without having to drive miles to get there, 4. If our city wasn't 480 square miles large, 5. If our city didn't have one of the highest number of bicycle and pedestrian deaths/injuries in the state, 6. If various health providers that we frequently use weren't so far away, 7. etc. etc. etc.

Cheers!

So you're saying there's a chance......... LOL

 

[Koolau]

We have a friend who turned 86 recently. He finally gave up his vehicle as he now lives in assisted living (where his wife lives in skilled nursing.) In the past 15 years, he has had THREE (3) "last trucks." You know: "This is my last truck, so I wanted it to be exactly what I wanted, with all the bells and whistles and leather and back up camera and club cab for the GKs and GGKs...etc."

Heh, heh, I hope I'm like that!

 

[audreyh1]

Yeah, definitely factored into our recent car buying decision. “If not now when?” in terms of when we can get maximum enjoyment. Don’t know how much longer we’ll go for long driving road trips.

 

[mh]

Yeah, I don't see how people who bike to the grocery store can get more than a day or two of groceries each trip. I could see grabbing a few light, dry items and throwing them in a backpack, but how would you manage with a gallon of milk, a dozen eggs, a tub of butter, a container of yogurt, a pack of frozen salmon or other meat, a bunch of bananas, etc.? I suppose if you're really into biking and don't mind going back and forth multiple times per week, it'd be doable, but I think I'd grow tired of the week-in, week-out drudgery of that pretty quickly.

I do the multiple trips and just regard it as part of my exercise regimen. Like anything you have to do it for a while till your body is used to it. At that point , it does seem just as convenient to me as a car. In my case the market is not that far away which is another factor of course. I can also understand it not working due to weather in some places. You do want to have a decent bike , that rides efficiently, not a clunker or beach cruiser

 

[mh]

Get one of these https://www.amazon.com/Schwinn-Trip...locphy=9018726&hvtargid=pla-433573329811&th=1

I have one of those and they work well if you are in a relatively flat area. Bigger hills not so much. The one I have is easy to hook on and off , like 30 seconds. It has a quick release bracket which you attach to the frame near the back axle

 

[audreyh1]

I’ve noticed a lot of folks in our 55+ neighborhood have electric bikes now.

 

[Bigdawg]

Both my mom and FIL drove until they died at 89 and 92. A woman in my building has a dog sitting business at 90 and still drives fine. Some aren’t so lucky. Personally I will know if I am not safe anymore and will give it up voluntarily.

Terry, I respect your opinion that you will know, but my guess is that you will not. In my limited experience (5 elderly relatives I dealt with and a few neighbors) all but one said they were fine to drive despite mutiple fender benders and traffic light running incidents. Best of luck to you. Hope you(we) all make the right decision when the time comes.

 

[Ronstar]

MIL was a wreck free driver until 90 yo, when she blacked out at the wheel and drove into a furniture store. We made sure that she's been carless ever since.

 

[Trailwalker]

My dad never had an accident.. At 90, he didn't pass the behind-the-wheel test in Iowa, and decided to hang up his keys rather than try again. I applauded him for doing that, but he is still mad about it--just not mad enough to try again.

 

[Teacher Terry]

Terry, I respect your opinion that you will know, but my guess is that you will not. In my limited experience (5 elderly relatives I dealt with and a few neighbors) all but one said they were fine to drive despite mutiple fender benders and traffic light running incidents. Best of luck to you. Hope you(we) all make the right decision when the time comes.

I come from a family of realists. When my dad had a stroke at 59 he came home from the hospital and took his driver’s license out of his wallet, crumbling it and threw it across the room. He said he would never drive again. We all appreciated not having to be the bad guy.

My mom’s sister voluntarily quit driving in her 80’s because her vision was no longer good enough. The last 3 years of my mom’s life she had cancer and only drove when she felt well enough. I and my siblings all rode with her and she was fine. But I have 2 outspoken sons that will let me know if I am unsafe). If my dad could give up driving which is something he loved dearly I who doesn’t like to drive can do it when necessary.

 

[brett]

We lived in downtown Toronto for four years.

We did not have a car, nor did we want one. We had buses and subways within a block And taxis. Owning a vehicle would have been a PITA.

We saw no reason to pay for garage space, insurance, upkeep, depreciation, etc. . We rented a car on those occasional weekends when we needed one.

I know of one senior couple who decided to try life without a car. It was at the point where they were considering buying a new car.

First thing they did was arrange for an account with a local taxi company. They were billed every month. Worked out just fine for them. They thought it would be more costly than owning a car. Turned out that it was a fairly large saving.

They rent a car from time to time but much less frequently than they thought they would.