Archae
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Fri Mar-07-08 11:00 PM
Original message |
How many DU'ers here are like me, you don't own a car? |
|
I ride my bicycle, take the bus, and have helpful neighbors on the rare occasion I need to be driven anywhere.
I haven't drove a car in almost 20 years now.
|
MrsBrady
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Fri Mar-07-08 11:04 PM
Response to Original message |
1. can't get by in the Dallas/Fort Worth area without one n/t |
Archae
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Fri Mar-07-08 11:05 PM
Response to Reply #1 |
|
Talk about short-sightedness...
|
MrsBrady
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Fri Mar-07-08 11:27 PM
Response to Reply #2 |
5. yea, well...they didn't ask me...lol |
|
Dallas (and some of it's suburbs) has Dart....but it's not convenient. I feel sorry for the population that doesn't have choice BUT to ride it. They used to have a slogan "We'll get you there."....and I used to say: "Dart: We'll get you there when we want to get you there." Dart has a lot of funding problems and corruption, too, in my opinion. With as much tax money as they get from Dallas County sales tax, there should be better service than there is, I personally believe. Basic bus service only started in the late 80's.
Fort Worth has the "T", but that's a joke. I live in a Fort Worth Suburb. Public trans is non-existent.
They are trying to focus on getting light rail, but it will be years, if at all before it's ever done. Personally, I don't really think it will ever happen.
|
suninvited
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Mon Mar-10-08 05:07 PM
Response to Reply #1 |
59. My brother lives in Dallas and doesnt have a car |
|
he cant drive because he is disabled, he has a spine disease and cannot turn his head or twist his back therefore he can only look straight ahead when he is sitting. He takes the bus to work and to everywhere else he needs to go.
|
Bennyboy
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Fri Mar-07-08 11:06 PM
Response to Original message |
|
Bike and bus or friends. Sometimes for longer trips I borrow a car from my folks......The bus stops right outside my door and runs every hour. I got to the point where I was spending more on my car, gas, insurance maintenance etc than i was on food and rent.
|
Viva_La_Revolution
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Fri Mar-07-08 11:11 PM
Response to Original message |
4. Gave mine away over 6 years ago... I have never felt so rich. |
|
No more insurance payments, no more fill-ups at the gas station, no more lookin' in the rear-view for the cops... I listen to lefty talk radio or read the most recent copy of Freethought Today while I wait for the bus, all the while feeling smug and self satisfied for not adding to the global warming/whoring for oil issues...
Freedom ROCKS!
|
Initech
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Fri Mar-07-08 11:31 PM
Response to Original message |
6. Cant get by in La La Land without one. |
huskerlaw
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 02:42 AM
Response to Reply #6 |
|
it's just *horribly* inconvenient. But my roomie manages fairly well...she doesn't even have a license (grew up in NYC).
|
Initech
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 06:57 PM
Response to Reply #21 |
29. If I only lived downtown... |
|
But I dont. I live in Orange County where there is no mass transportation, and the idiots in my town voted against a train station, but voted *TO* widen the freeway. :banghead:
|
huskerlaw
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sun Mar-09-08 05:19 AM
Response to Reply #29 |
35. yeah, the OC isn't as user drienfly |
|
we live in the valley and I use public transportation to get to work downtown. The roomie takes the bus to west hollywood every day.
|
ScreamingMeemie
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sun Mar-09-08 11:09 AM
Response to Reply #6 |
42. Mr brother has lived there for 13 years without a car. |
|
It's a pain in the butt sometimes, but do-able.
|
Iggo
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Mon Mar-10-08 08:52 AM
Response to Reply #6 |
48. I've gotten by for 46 years without one. |
|
Bikes, buses, trains, and a lot of shoe leather.
|
CBHagman
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Fri Mar-07-08 11:33 PM
Response to Original message |
7. I have never owned a car. |
|
Shoe leather, shuttles, buses, trains, taxis, and the occasional lift from a friend get me everywhere.
|
Kool Kitty
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 02:51 AM
Response to Reply #7 |
|
I have never had a driver's license either. (Maybe this doesn't count because my husband drives and owns a car, but I personally do not.)
|
ThomCat
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Fri Mar-07-08 11:39 PM
Response to Original message |
8. Me. Even back when I could have handled a car if I wanted to |
|
I didn't. Never wanted to get a license.
|
Silver Swan
(805 posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Fri Mar-07-08 11:39 PM
Response to Original message |
|
My last driver's license expired in 1971.
I am the queen of public transportation.
However, I do have a kind spouse who drives me places. If I didn't have him, I would have Peapod.com deliver my groceries!
I used to live in a suburban city that was very pedestrian friendly, where I could walk every where. Before I retired, I always used public transportation to get to work. Although I had to move from that place, I still live within walking distance of a train station, a drug store, a hardware store, a grocery store, and a library.
I sometimes think that I should try to get a driver's license, but there are so many bad and stupid drivers out there that: 1. I do not want to become one of them, and 2. It is much too scary for me to attempt to drive.
|
ScreamingMeemie
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Fri Mar-07-08 11:40 PM
Response to Original message |
10. No reliable public transportation anywhere in the metro area |
|
Personal reasons make it not feasible for me to ride a bike and I have children so not an option.
|
Starbucks Anarchist
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Fri Mar-07-08 11:41 PM
Response to Original message |
Lyric
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Fri Mar-07-08 11:47 PM
Response to Original message |
12. No car, and life is really hard. |
|
We live in a semi-rural area with nasty winter weather and a LOT of steep hills. Without a car, we're screwn when it snows, because the city bus can't make it to where we live, and we're much too far out to walk. I wound up having to drop my 9:30 am French class because we had a two-week span of snow and/or ice, and the roads weren't navigable for the bus until at least noon. *sigh*
We hope to get another car this Fall, because the limitations imposed by the bus schedule are just too difficult to bear long-term. Bicycles are not an option--narrow, steep-hilled roads with deep ditches on either side and my herniated spinal disc combine to make bike-riding on main roads a BAD idea. One fall could land me in the hospital or paralyze me again. :(
|
Muttocracy
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 01:51 AM
Response to Reply #12 |
DainBramaged
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 07:45 PM
Response to Reply #12 |
33. If I win the lottery.......... |
Lyric
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sun Mar-09-08 11:03 AM
Response to Reply #33 |
39. If you win the lottery |
|
I'll look YOU up! :rofl:
Thank you dear heart :hug:
|
DainBramaged
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Mon Mar-10-08 08:41 AM
Response to Reply #39 |
47. There would be a LOTof folks on DU I'd look up and help |
|
What a fitting way to share the wealth!
:party:
|
Pied Piper
(363 posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 12:45 AM
Response to Original message |
13. 12 years without a car |
|
I live in Boston. Having a car here is more of a liability than an advantage. I walk to work, and all of the necessary amenities are within walking distance. The public transportation here is pretty good, if not always the most effective. My transportation costs are less than $50 per month. I save literally THOUSANDS of dollars per year by not owning a car. I can always rent one if I need to make a trip, or I can splurge on a cab.
|
Gormy Cuss
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 01:36 AM
Response to Reply #13 |
|
Never had the least desire to own a car when I lived in Boston. Between the T and shoe leather it's pretty easy to do without one. There's never a parking crisis either/ You're also right that one saves a bundle not having a car. Even after factoring in all of the occasional car trips, cab rides, etc it was much cheaper.
|
Lydia Leftcoast
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 12:57 AM
Response to Original message |
14. I lived without one for ten years, and I consider those the good old days |
|
After I started driving again (after moving to Minneapolis), my disposable income went DOWN $3,000, due entirely to the car.
Unfortunately, the Twin Cities, unlike Portland, have mediocre public transit, so I have to use a car for some things, like visiting all my relatives and going to events in the many places that are difficult to get to by bus.
However, after my elders are gone, I hope to move downtown and be car-free once again.
|
Roon
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 01:12 AM
Response to Original message |
15. Denver has the best mass transit system in the country |
|
Edited on Sat Mar-08-08 01:14 AM by Roon
I can get anywhere by bus or light rail. Including the airport.
On edit:I get either get a ride from my Grandfather or borrow his car to get cat food and kitty litter.
|
Cant trust em
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 01:21 AM
Response to Original message |
16. I don't have a car either. Where do you live? NT |
Archae
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 02:25 AM
Response to Reply #16 |
LeftyMom
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 01:39 AM
Response to Original message |
18. I only learned to drive two years ago. |
|
Unfortunately my classes let out long after the last bus runs, so I have to have a car to get back and forth to school. Otherwise, I would really rather not.
|
enigmatic
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 02:57 AM
Response to Original message |
|
I've either ridden bikes, rode the bus, or rode in somebody else's car just about all my life. No reason really, just never had the desire to drive.
|
Omphaloskepsis
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 03:01 AM
Response to Original message |
24. 30 years without a car... |
|
And I am 30 years old. And I don't really plan on ever driving.
|
ikojo
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 03:33 AM
Response to Original message |
25. I've owned one car in my life. I currently own two scooters, |
|
Edited on Sat Mar-08-08 03:38 AM by ikojo
a Vespa GT 200L and a Piaggio Typhoon. I LOVE them!!!
I went 15.5 years without private transportation. It's not easy, even in St Louis. When I can't ride my scooter to work I spend approximately 4 hours a day on the bus (1.5 to get to work and 2.5 hours to get home).
|
taterguy
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 05:05 AM
Response to Original message |
26. I was car-free for about 10 years |
|
I was broke when my car died and couldn't afford to replace it.
I managed to get along so well without it that I never bothered replacing it when my financial status improved.
Now I share one with my wife but it rarely gets used.
When I had no car the only thing that was a real pain in the ass was buying dog food.
Otherwise I could manage just fine on a bicycle.
I lived within a couple miles of my job, a grocery store and most of the bars I wanted to go to.
If I needed to go out of town I'd rent a car or take AMTRAK.
I admit that now that there's a car in my driveway I do take some trips in it that earlier I would have used a bike for.
|
applegrove
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 05:41 PM
Response to Original message |
27. I've never owned a car though I did have access to family cars for a long time. |
|
Now I take the bus/taxis/walk.
|
Rhythm
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 05:54 PM
Response to Original message |
28. Haven't had one of our own since Halloween |
|
Transmission died, and wasn't worth the repair costs.
We'll likely get another one of our own at the beginning of the fall. In the meanwhile, our city has somewhat-adequate bus service, the PRT, and we have a friend who takes us places when the buses don't run
|
La Lioness Priyanka
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 06:59 PM
Response to Original message |
harmonicon
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 07:18 PM
Response to Original message |
|
For a year now. In most ways it's really great not having a car. What I don't like is the feeling of being cooped up that I sometimes get. With a car, I could drive to another city just because I wanted to. I am thinking about getting a scooter, because if I lived further out of town, I could get a bigger/nicer apartment for the money. To afford a car the apartment would have to be a castle and rent for $1/month, but I think I could live 4 or 5 miles from town with a scooter. About a mile would be the limit walking. Now that I don't have a car, I like it. It's nice to walk to get groceries, etc.
|
myrna minx
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 07:43 PM
Response to Original message |
32. I haven't owned a car since 1991. |
Lydia Leftcoast
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Mon Mar-10-08 02:33 PM
Response to Reply #32 |
|
In that case, our new Saturday meetings on Eat Street should be accessible to you.
See the Minnesota Forum for details. The next one will be in April.
:hi:
|
myrna minx
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Mon Mar-10-08 04:37 PM
Response to Reply #56 |
|
Good to see you. :hi: I'll check it out.
|
LuckyTheDog
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sat Mar-08-08 07:47 PM
Response to Original message |
|
If you can afford a car, you buy one. It's a rule.
|
taterguy
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sun Mar-09-08 05:29 AM
Response to Reply #34 |
36. I remember asking about bus routes from the Detroit train station to the airport |
|
All I got was laughs and instructions to take a cab
|
terrya
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sun Mar-09-08 05:36 AM
Response to Original message |
37. I don't. Thank goodness for the CTA. |
Lavender Brown
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sun Mar-09-08 10:47 AM
Response to Original message |
38. I went without for a while |
|
It was awful in a lot of ways (public transportation is not great here), but I survived.
|
DarkTirade
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sun Mar-09-08 11:05 AM
Response to Original message |
40. I didn't for the first five years of my adult life |
|
and between the urban sprawl and crappy public transit in Orlando it made my life pretty much impossible.
I finally got one at the age of 23. But unfortunately it went kaboom back in July.
Right now I drive my grandparents' cars, since my grandpa can't drive anymore and I moved up here to drive him to and from dialysis 3 times a week. So I still drive. I just don't have my own car.
|
grace0418
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sun Mar-09-08 11:08 AM
Response to Original message |
41. I didn't have one until I was 27. But now I work in a place without reliable public |
|
transportation and biking along that particular road would be suicide.
|
WritingIsMyReligion
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sun Mar-09-08 11:37 AM
Response to Original message |
43. I don't, but my family does. |
|
I will soon. It's impossible to do without a car here. :D
|
stuntcat
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sun Mar-09-08 11:48 AM
Response to Original message |
|
so that's why I don't have one. I walk everywhere and take the bus and metro sometimes. I have a scooter that I'm scared to use and I know if I tried a bike I'd just break my neck lol
I used to drive though, drive and drive and drive. Now I'm kinda wonky so it's not safe, but I don't mind it, I'm so freaked out and scared about the environment.
|
BreweryYardRat
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sun Mar-09-08 12:04 PM
Response to Original message |
45. Tampa/St. Pete is borderline impossible to live in without a car. |
|
Did it for the first two years of college. Gave up when a bus trip to visit my then-girlfriend took three hours in the pouring rain. (Florida public transit is a JOKE -- buses come by once an hour, and not necessarily when the schedule says they will.) I could have driven to her place in about 30 minutes.
Now I drive a crappy Volvo that gets 10 mpg, but dammit, at least I can do stuff now.
And if you try biking in Florida...hoo boy. Be prepared to cook and/or get drenched most of the year, have to worry about crazy-ass drivers, and take forever to get where you're going. Shame, really. I've got a good bike -- I just can't use it.
I never used bike lanes down here -- I'd rather take chances on the sidewalk than risk some damn fool plowing into me.
|
Dave_Fl_50
(186 posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Mon Mar-10-08 11:55 AM
Response to Reply #45 |
50. I hear they're planning a subway |
|
There's a sarcasm icon around here somewhere
|
Manifestor_of_Light
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Mon Mar-10-08 01:51 PM
Response to Reply #45 |
51. This sounds just like Houston. |
|
Horrible heat and humidity, crazy drivers, totally inadequate buses. If it's hot you risk getting heat exhaustion waiting for the bus.
We have a toy train downtown that they're really proud of. It's on the surface road grade so lots of wrecks happen from drivers making illegal left turns in front of it.
And there's a park and ride lot at one end that they CHARGE you money to park in!!! And METRO can't understand why that makes people mad. :banghead:
If you work in the Medical Center (which employs 75,000 people) it costs $10 a day to park, and they don't add that to your salary. :banghead:
And to go from one side of town to the other can be about 40 miles or more.
|
dropkickpa
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Sun Mar-09-08 12:05 PM
Response to Original message |
|
I bus or hoof it, and sometimes get a ride to the grocery store with my brother and his wife and my mom.
I like to drive, I just can't justify the cost when I really DON'T have that great a need to do it.
|
texas1928
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Mon Mar-10-08 08:55 AM
Response to Original message |
49. I don't own one, but I am making payments on it... |
|
So, soon it will be mine.
|
RebelOne
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Mon Mar-10-08 02:20 PM
Response to Original message |
52. Being without a car is not an option where I live |
|
in North Georgia just northwest of Atlanta. No public transportation at all. And I work too far away from home to ride a bike.
|
geardaddy
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Mon Mar-10-08 02:21 PM
Response to Original message |
|
There are a lot of people in Minneapolis that bike everywhere (even in subzero cold).
|
sakabatou
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Mon Mar-10-08 02:22 PM
Response to Original message |
Withywindle
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Mon Mar-10-08 02:25 PM
Response to Original message |
55. 16 years without one, doing fine! |
|
Yay, Chicago! :hi:
I live close enough to the Loop that it's only about 20 minutes to work on the bus. And if I'm running late, cab fare is only about 7 bucks with tip.
I don't even know very many people who have cars. And on the rare occasions we need one, we've got the I-Go car sharing service. (A friend of mine is a member and she helped me out this weekend when I needed to get my new kitty from Anti-Cruelty Society and buy her supplies. :D)
|
MrSlayer
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
|
Mon Mar-10-08 02:50 PM
Response to Original message |
57. I don't own one because I don't need one. |
|
I live in South Philadelphia. Everything is in walking distance and if it's not I live a block from the subway.
|
DU
AdBot (1000+ posts) |
Tue Apr 30th 2024, 05:55 PM
Response to Original message |