Not actually no car but going from two cars to one car.
Weekly runabout shopping etc obviously no problem, but if I want to go off for the weekend camping/biking/walking etc what’s the easiest/cheapest way to get there. What are the best sites for train fares, how far in advance to you have to book? Public transport numpty here so be gentle please!

Why can’t you take the 1 car you have left?

For transport, funnily enough it depends where you’re going! Train fares are the same price everywhere, pick a site you get on with. Check singles as well as returns, might be cheaper. 3 or 4 weeks in advance is best price wise, thetrainline.com is a good place to start. Or consider car/van hire – can be inexpensive if there’s a few of you.

Yup, what he said. A while back Enterprise were doing a crazy cheap deal for weekends – I hired a diesel Fiesta from Friday to Monday for something like 45 quid.

I just tend to get a lift with one of the people I’ll be riding with, split the petrol costs everyone is happy. Occasionally it’s a pain, but the cost of running one car is much better than having to run 2 when neither I or my wife drive to work.

Riding is done localy

Trains – local journeys aren’t worth buying in advance for, longer ones it saves a small fortune. But it limits you to one train, miss it and you’ll be forking out the full price for that leg (usualy only ~50p less than the day return ticket price) so you can’t stay for one last drink, one more lap of the trail center etc.

I now have an MG Midget, even that is cheeper and more practical than taking the train!

We’ve only ever had one car. Easy enough as we live in a city and, until last year, both worked in the centre.

The great advatage of car ownership is the minimal forward planning it requires (if you discount having to tax, insure, service and MOT it). So, when that goes journeys seem really hard work.

The reality is that they aren’t – you do just need to plan more.

We got rid of our second car about 2 years ago and cope pretty well.
The main reason was financial and we’re quids in since.

If I’m going off on my own somewhere with kit then if it’s an easy train ride I take the train, but more usually I hire a car.
On your own a small car is fine and cost very little.

We needed a second car a few weeks ago so hired a Ford KA for a week from Enterprise for £126 – wife used that and I took the family car. They can drop off and pick up as well.
For Mayhem I hire a van and take a mate as well.
Local stuff I tend to cycle or use Taxis.

Depends on how often you get away as to whether car hire is acceptable but if you use the same local place they will do deals for you if you’re a regular.

One pain with Enterprise though is that they handle fuel on a bring it back with the same amount in, which is a real pain to get right. It’s apparantly beciase they are too far from a petrol station to top up cars that come back less than full and I’ve been advised to keep a check on the miles, then work out how much petrol I must have used !
They are the cheapest though…

The great advatage of car ownership is the minimal forward planning it requires (if you discount having to tax, insure, service and MOT it). So, when that goes journeys seem really hard work.

The reality is that they aren’t – you do just need to plan more.

Totally agree when I didnt have a car I never missed it and it wasnt like I couldnt get places.

Once you’ve got a car though and paid the MOT/Tax/Insurance it doesnt seem to make sense to use other methods of transport.

As for trains like people say sometimes its generally cheaper to book in advance for longer journeys. But does nt matter for shorter journeys. Just spending some time on the National rail website typing in different destinations will give you a good idea of what is and isnt possible on the train.

You just adjust to it tbh. I’ve not had one for almost 18 months, prefer to spend the money elsewhere. Car hire for group 1 is about £35 for a long weekend, 5th one is free. It does make you stop and think a little and sometimes it’s an arse, but I don’t want another. I either ride locally or borrow the work van, which is £30 a weekend. That makes it easier.

As the others have said – you need to plan and be creative – and just accept the costs.

A car cost thousands a year – but you don’t notice it in the same way you notice the car hire / taxi fares. Mentally set aside £2000 to cover the costs of transport and use that to get you around

contrary to the belief on here trains are generally quick, convenient and cheap so long as you book more than a week ahead for long distance or travel outside of peak hours

Thetrainline.com

So – cycle locally, train when possible, hire car when not – you will still save significant money over the cost of a car.

Our Enterprise let you either bring it back half full (well awkward!) or empty for an extra 30 quid. I went for empty and according to the computer had 3 miles left when I dropped it off. Bet they love me!

And trains CAN be great, but they can have problems – just try getting anywhere interesting from Hull on a Sunday morning. But you just have to work around it, on the flipside I can get to London for a weekend for £20 if I book in advance far enough.

Another tip for longer train journies with a bike is that East Coast Express is (AFAIK) the only place you can reserve your bike on the train online.

Depending on where you are it might be worth looking at a car share club like WhizzGo, although the last time I looked it didn’t work out any cheaper than a regular hire car for a weekend.

that East Coast Express is (AFAIK) the only place you can reserve your bike on the train online.

Truth, and a good pro-tip, forgot about that one. Bikes go for free, but you do need to reserve a space. If you book tickets online you can take them to a station in person and get the bike reservation ticket though.

never had a car! never will, if you cant ride or get train or bus their, i dont go!

they can be funny about taking bikes in one piece (a bike bag’s prob’ly the way to go), but between Megabus and National Express you can get stupidly cheap tickets. can be crowded and is generally a bit uncomfortable, but my last couple of return trips from brum – southampton have cost £7 and £1. not the biggest selection of destinations either, alas.

jenbe – Member

never had a car! never will, if you cant ride or get train or bus there, i dont go!

+1 (with added cadging of lifts from well-wishers)

I managed without a car for years. As has been pointed out, that’s fine if you live (and work) in the city. I’ve recently had to succumb now I’m working further afield.

I used the trains extensively, regarded anything under 15 miles as fair game for riding (weather permitting). Then hire cars when necessary. Easycar are pretty good.

One thing I can’t get over is the shear amount of money i now spend on petrol, insurance, Tax. Its a massive chunk of my income I just never used to think about before.

You’ll now experience the reverse. Which means as your bike(s) is essentially your main form of transport, you can spend more on them 🙂

Look out for ‘network cards’ for trains – Network SE card for me costs £25 and saves 1/3 off offpeak fares for cardholder and three other adults 😀

Check out street car if they are in your area. There are other car clubs too doing similar deals / things.

Also schemes like this http://www.whipcar.com/hire-my-car-out/

Before I met wifey I had owned a car for one year only – while living in the US.
Wifey and I now share a car between us – although I rarely use it, and then only for lugging the kids around.

Top tips:
1) Buy a Brompton. These are the most useful and sociable bikes ever. Meet the wife for lunch and blag a lift back, just fold the bike and put it in the boot. No need for reservations on trains or buses. They’re also brilliant fun to ride.
2) Buy a hack bike – a good, low-maintenance one. Full mudguards, dynamo lights etc.
3) Buy a trailer. A two-wheeler like the Carry Freedom City will do nicely. When I get sent shopping the car stays in the drive.
4) A hire-car is cheaper than a second car, but I’ve never felt the need to use one.

Are car’s that expensive though

yearly:
£125 tax
£350 insurance (fully comp with every extra ticked, 1 yr ncb at 24)
Serviceing £whatever I get arround to spending, last year it was about £250 to cure 101 niggling faults and settign it up on the dyno but thats an exception, the last 2 years were <£30 DIY
~£200 in repairs on avreage the last 2 years, but before that £0 for 3 years.
£1400 in fuel if I do the full 6000miles I’m insured for at 28mpg.

Motoring is cheep, it’s only expensive if you buy an expensive car.

If you live anywhere other than a city you are pretty much f*cked for convenient public transport so car it is….

If you live in the country you need a car (but not for mountainbiking so much).

If you live in a city you don’t need a car (I guess), unless you own a mountainbike. Then you do.

As you’ll only be using it for mountainbiking trips… I’d buy a van.

jenbe – Member
never had a car! never will, if you cant ride or get train or bus their, i dont go!

Why?

Never had a car, prefer to ride my bike.
Locally on the whole with Car/Van hires to cope with transport to events.
Got a large courier bag and a bob trailer and sack for the messages/supermarket trips.
I even got fed up hiring vans then spending up to 2 hours driving each way to Kiroughtree when I can ride from the house for free, when you factor in a day hire of a medium van and petrol its well over a £100 for a trip to a trail centre, money that could be spent on more shiny bits for the bike.

I’ve been experimenting with being ‘car free’ for the last 3 months. I live in a small town in north Wales, with my office about 25 miles away, but with my dog and many friends living in remote rural villages. The biggest pro has been the lower cost – I get a £16 weekly bus ticket supplemented by trains when needed, so on average about £25 week. This is a big saving compared to my transport costs when I had a car which were about £40 / week ie £2000 / yr (Inc tax, insurance, petrol, mot servicing and repairs, and depreciation).

But I am definately going to get another car – the bus to work takes twice as long as driving, stopping enroute to pick up shopping is not easy, and it’s impossible for me to get to my dog and friends on weekends and evenings. Quality of life and available time are definately worth an extra £15 week to me!

But it has been good

If you live in the country you need a car

Normally yes but we have a reasonable bus service. Apparently…

1) Buy a Brompton.

Excellent idea, N+1 etc haven’t got one of those!

We will still have one car so local shopping etc is no problem.
It’s only an issue when we both need transport at the weekend. Hire car (or van) sounds good. Probably 90% of my riding is from the front door so that need is pretty rare.

TINAS – 6k miles a year isn’t exactly a lot..! I ride more than that…

Mrs North and I are soon to be moving to a small village in West Lancs. I doubt buses pass through there more than twice a month. The supermarket is at least 10 miles away.

We work in separate places.

We’re proposing to do all this with one car – I can’t face the prospect of owning more than one of the sodding things..!

my neighbour (one single person) has three cars and one parking space…. idiot

and wonders why the people on our street get a bit arsey with him over parking

and we have good local access to bus, train and tram public transport

I didn’t have a car for ages, the only reason I got one was so I could drive to places to ride/climb. Mid Wales isn’t well serviced by trains 🙂

my neighbour (one single person) has three cars and one parking space…. idiot

You should be thanking him! 3 cars is less selfish than just 1, afteral he is giving the GOVT all that money for TAX and he isnt even using them to the full potential 😆

I live and work in central London and so don’t own a car.
if I’m going away for the weekend, I sometimes hire a car – it can cost anywhere between £40 and £100 for the weekend plus petrol, depending on the season and if there are any offers on. it’s worth shopping around though as there are car hire brokers (like Holiday Autos) who are cheaper than the big hirers (Hertz, Europcar, National, Alamo, Thrifty, etc.) and don’t try and rob you blind on the insurance.
I probably hire about 10 times a year. Saying that, I would really like a van.

Me and Mrs B decided to go down to one car about 15 years ago; I have always been able to cycle to work so the car has always technically been hers. I’ve got good riding locally. Mrs B works from home generally, so pretty simply whoever needs it for a kids related activity gets trumps on the car. For social stuff we have a good bus service to our nearby cities, so individual nights out are no fuss and even when we have a baby sitter neither of us really wants to drive so hop on the bus anyway. Weekends/ short breaks away, sometimes done on train, I think I’ve hired a car about twice in the last 5 years. For the odd weekend away biking with mates, one of them tends to drive and I get the single malt in, simples. It normal running to me, and I can’t say I ever think we could really do with another car…

I would rather get the bus into town than drive – easier.. but it takes 50 mins as opposed to 15, and it makes me feel sick 🙁

Motoring is cheep, it’s only expensive if you buy an expensive car

I believe that too, depreciation is a massive factor in running costs. Mines so old It’s stopped depreciating, has 199K on the clock, does 45mpg & I service it myself. It cost me 6.5K 7 years ago, I pay £230 insurance & £180 tax. I couldn’t/wouldn’t want to manage without it.

I don’t factor in depreciation. It’s not like I am keeping an asset. I am buying it to use it. It’s not a Rembrandt. It has a cost, that’s what I pay. Anything I get for it when/if I sell it is a bonus.

Mrs STR doesn’t drive (but is having lessons on and off). She uses public transport to get to work 3-4 days a week.

Her business is 12 miles away, it costs her about £30 per week on buses and if she misses one/has a late client, £20 per single journey in a taxi. Each way takes approx an hour on two buses. She can’t open up as early, or close as late as she’d like, so that costs us further.

Having a second car would be a no-brainer for us, she just needs to pull her finger out and pass her test.

I stopped driving about 26yrs ago. Never regretted it. Coincided with my chopper licence! 🙂

easiest/cheapest way to get there

that would be cycling. hope that helps 🙂

seriously, i rarely hire a car for trips. occasionally i’ll get lifts further afield, the odd train here and there. sometimes i’ll ride out from edinburgh and just get a train back (say, into east lothian or across to fife). mostly i just keep it local.

it totally works for me though i’m certain there are plenty of naysayers too.
and i did own a car til a year ago, so i know what it’s like to own one too…

never had a car! never will, if you cant ride or get train or bus their, i dont go!

Add two kids into the equation, schools/childcare & jobs 20 miles apart & a car soon becomes a necessity I’m afraid. Nice idea though, but unless your in a big city you’ve no chance unless your prepared to compromise on pretty much everything.
I spent 2 yrs without one once, but was working 5 mins away, & was single. I used to hire one for hols/xmas etc for visiting. Getting another was like passing my test again.