[Closed] To carless or not to carless?

If money isn't really an issue (Tax and Insurance) and the car is old enough to consider scrapping (hence, not depreciating), why bother with the inconvenience?

I couldnt carless.

Carless is ace in summer, when you have a motorbike. I saved so much money on transport this summer, car tax, insurance, petrol etc.

It sucks in winter when you live 18 miles from work and they stop the buses at the first hint of snow.

It's quite cheap these days to rent a car when you need it, the only problems I had were getting the glass to the recycling and buying cat litter. So when I have a rental for work always scheme to finish after the office closes so I can take it home.

Its all about planning really, you need to do a lot more when you don't have the convenience of 4 wheels parked right outside the house.

Although I rarely use my car, normally only at weekends, I think I'd struggle without one. Especially with going to see friends and family - or to get to a decent set of trails.

On the other hand, if you don't need a car day to day you could just hire one when you need it and not have to bother with tax, mots, servcing etc.

It's quite cheap these days to rent a car when you need it

On the other hand, if you don't need a car day to day you could just hire one when you need it and not have to bother with tax, mots, servcing etc.

That's what I'm thinking.

Money saved would be a help too! Probably spend at least £70 month on it with tax, petrol, insurance and recovery (not including repairs!)

I worked out that owning a car cost me £250 a month over the past year (VED, fuel, insurance, servicing/mot .. depreciation irrelevant on a 10-year-old Vectra).

I would love to go carless. Driving is tedious and expensive. But going carless presents numerous issues that I am not yet prepared to work around:

My sons school is a mere 15 mins walk, decent shops are only 20 minutes walk (& on a bus route right past our front door).

However where we live (Marple) the public transport is useless unless you want to go to Stockport (bus) or Manchester (train).

To get to work (Wythenshawe) would take me at least 90 minutes each way on multiple buses/trains, compared to 35/40 minutes each way on the bike or in the car.

Until I actually can't afford to run a car, I refuse to more than double the time I spend commuting each week to save a bit of money.

Whilst I have the choice, I prefer to spend the time with my wife and kids.

To visit my parents or many of our friends (Poynton/Cheadle Hulme/Bramhall area) would take half a days travelling to get there and back, as opposed to maybe 20 minutes each way in the car.

If we wanted to go out for an evening, without a car we'd be restricted to the local pubs/restaurants. There'd be no more visiting friends/family except at weekends.

We also have relatives in Wirrall. Hiring a car would be acceptable, but in light of all the above I won't be getting rid of the car just yet.

I should add, carless is also ace when you live right by the best trails in Scotland, and therefore the world. I couldn't handle it if I lived in the city and couldn't ride straight out of the door.

Carless (sort of) it is!

Housemate is off to work a season in the alps from December so I've got the option of using his little Polo when he's away. Until then it's road bike time!

Car free here with no regrets. and have been almost all my life

It saves me thousands a year - I mentally put this money aside and spend it on hire cars trains and taxis as needed. I am still better off as a result.

Cycle to work, get shopping delivered, use bikes and trains for long distances and hire cars when its the only way to do it sensibly. You have to be imaginative and plan ahead tho - spontaneity is sometimes harder

Try looking at the car clubs as well - they work for some

You will be better off, happier and fitter as a result. Its a whole hatfull of win

I couldn't handle it if I lived in the city and couldn't ride straight out of the door.

I live in teh city and its fine - ride straight from my door

Hmm - use my car very little at the moment. Have done ~50 miles in the last 2 and a bit weeks. The trouble is, I did really need it for most of that mileage, and I also still do occasional long trips with kit (where a hire car would be a complete pain).

Thanks for the reminder to sort my car tax though!

Why would a hire car be a pain?

aracer - Member
Hmm - use my car very little at the moment. Have done ~50 miles in the last 2 and a bit weeks. The trouble is, I did really need it for most of that mileage, and I also still do occasional long trips with kit (where a hire car would be a complete pain).

Thanks for the reminder to sort my car tax though!

I've done 500 miles in 6 months. In that time I've paid £180 insurance and £100 VED. Just not worth it imo.

An example of organising things without a car. Wanted to go for a walk along the coast today. For convenience and speed to get started we got a £23 taxi fare to the coast. 10 mile walk not retuning to the same spot - £4 each train home with a ten minute wait for the train and a £1.30 bus fare back from the station with a 5 min wait.

£33 to do the transport for the walk which sounds expensive - but its exactly the sort of thing most folk "need" a car for and over time we spend less this way that a car would cost. Would have been a tenner or so in the car and we would have had to return to our start point

I refer you to my recent post:
http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/the-end-of-motoring

£33 to do the transport for the walk which sounds expensive

plus the cost of the petrol and all the other expense. However this was not a money saving day - but it shows how you can arrange things without a car - I got more convenience than driving myself.

plus the cost of the petrol and all the other expense. However this was not a money saving day - but it shows how you can arrange things without a car - I got more convenience than driving myself.

On this unusual occasions, yes, for most of us and most journeys car ownership makes a lot of sense.

MY fixed costs are less than aracer's - please don't tell me I've hot them wrong again.

MY fixed costs are less than aracer's - please don't tell me I've hot them wrong again.

Oh, and I think we did the hire car thing didn't we? Roof loads.

Of course of the 50 miles I've done, the only feasible alternative to a car would have been a taxi - given my fixed costs and £50-£60 in taxi fares for that I'm struggling to see how it would be cheaper not owning a car.

Every time you use your car I will do different things - some are cheaper, some are more expensive, some are more conveninet, some are less.

I certainly spend less on transport than almost any car owner. I also did a 15 mile bike ride this morning. Cost - zilch

Its how it balances out over the year.

I certainly spend less on transport than almost any car owner. I also did a 15 mile bike ride this morning. Cost - zilch

I'm not arguing that what you do doesn't suit you - I don't live in a city with good PT. I have a family with kids who sometimes need moving around when the weather's bad and limited time. I have hobbies which involve the transport of awkward items. I have a solution which involves me owning a car without spending that much money on it.

I certainly spend less on transport than almost any car owner. I also did a 15 mile bike ride this morning. Cost - zilch

How do you know that and how much?

And your bike costs nothing to run...yet you are always telling us we underestimate the costs of running cars?

"Oh teh ironing"...the 2 don't add up...

I sold the car and went bike only earlier this year and TBH I don't miss it. Like you mentioned, the car was only used when feeling lazy or for longer trips. I now hire a car for some of the longer trips or use the train and commute by bike.

net result is approx £160 better off each month, a further 2 stone lost in weight and I now find sitting in a car in traffic the most annoying thing ever.