A year ago, I made the decision to give up my car. Well, the decision was sort of made for me. The car had a whole host of minor issues which added together made one big issue and would have cost about five times the car’s value to fix. As I was about to start working in London and would be travelling to work on train every day, I decided give my car to the nice WeBuyAnyCar man and not replace it with another which would be sat outside my flat almost all the time.
Not everyone will be able to give up a car. Some people are in secluded locations and/or may need to make journeys that aren’t well suited to public transport. Some people might need the flexibility or freedom for their job.
I don’t mean to be evangelical or to tell other people that they should do the same as that’s not my thing. My circumstances may change and I may want to get a car again in the future. I just want to share my experience of doing so.
The reaction to giving up my car varied considerably from “You’re crazy” to “Good on you” to “How are you going to give me lifts to football now?”
I felt liberated. I’ve never been a great fan of driving and can never feel relaxed or enjoy it as much as some people seem to be able to. Spending my life on buses and predominantly trains I am able to enjoy the journey a bit more, to read a book and zone out whilst someone takes me where I need to go.
There are added pressures – one of which is that I am always worried about missing public transport so usually turn up far too early. As soon as I’m on board though, it’s time to relax.
Living without a car has prompted me to walk more, which can only be beneficial. Except when it’s raining. Then I get a bit grumpy. The weather has not really been an issue though. I’ve not got completely drenched at any point and I’ve learnt to deal with a bit of drizzle.
Financially I am much better off. I estimated the costs of insurance, road tax, petrol, MOT, repairs and purchasing a car to be around £120 per month for the journeys I was making. Most of my journeys were those I could have walked and I was only driving out of laziness. When I make the same journeys now, they are either on foot or bus, with the bus journeys I make costing under £5 each.
One main issue is doing my shopping. I had to change my mindset and my habits. At first I went into the supermarket and put as much in my trolley as I would have done previously. I then struggled to carry four bags of shopping home. Now, I am visiting the shops every other day, buying less in one go and often having more fresh food. It would be nice to be able to get a big weekly shop all done in one go but the change isn’t too onerous.
There have been occassions when I’ve needed a car. I’ve been insured on my dad’s car since I gave up mine, and also on my girlfriend’s more recently. I therefore have access to one when I really need it (assuming I can borrow one without imposing). These instances are infrequent, though. I am lucky as I live in a small town and almost anywhere I want to go is walkable in under half an hour.
The environmental impact of not owning a car also allows me to be a little bit smug about not harming the world whilst also benefiting myself as well. And I quite like being smug.
I may not have convinced you to give up your car, and as I stated, that wasn’t my aim. But think about this: If you have no car, there’s no chance of getting caught in Operation Stack.