Louis Paolella
seattle
08/13/2009
Reflecting back on the past month of car-free living, I feel a supreme sense of accomplishment. I have really succeeded in living without a dependency on a car. Furthermore, I have become very comfortable with the Seattle Metro, and I now know both its service and drawbacks. Lastly, I sold my car and I am now car-free by choice and necessity. Taken in this light, the past month has been a truly life-changing experience.
In all honesty, losing the car was and, for those considering the change, will be more challenging. Your quotidian schedule will have to change and you may have to roll out of bed 30 minutes earlier, especially if your commute is longer. However, car-free living is possible and achievable. Even if you have to wake up earlier to catch that bus to work, you will arrive to work more rested without the worries of car maintenance and traffic, and you will actually add to the amount of personal time you have each day; you can read that novel you have always wanted to finish.
However, the stronger driving force to choosing car-free living (at least for me) is the relevancy to the health of the environment and the society. One may question how living without a car may have such a significant impact, but I believe that a simple choice like this could dramatically improve the environment on a global scale and the health/security of our country. The relevancy of foregoing the car on environmental protection should be quite apparent. A significant amount of research has been conducted in the field on the environmental impact of human combustion of fossil fuels. I was looking at a study conducted at Washington State University on fossil fuel production in Washington State and in 1990, 50% of the emissions were transportation-related. Furthermore, industry and building-produced emissions appear to be relatively stable while transportation emissions continue to increase. This shows how effectively we could impact carbon emissions by curtailing the use of the car. This also represents a method that requires no advancement in technology; we can start this today.
As for the impact of car-free living on the overall health of society, I am certain there are skeptics. I must acknowledge it is a slight stretch, but since the widespread adoption of the automobile people have been less physically active; recently there has been pressure to more actively combat what is beginning to be seen as a disease. Keeping a slim figure does not have only aesthetic advantages but profound significance on later-life disease prevention (the big ones: cancer, diabetes, and heart disease). By choosing to walk or bike to work you dramatically increase your activity level. In addition, I believe the car has permitted our society to become more introverted and more fearful of others. We drive home from work alone directly into our suburban garage without even acknowledging our neighbor. Children cannot play on the lawn adjacent to streets for fear of being hit, and instead entertain themselves inside with movies or video games. Losing the car may not be the silver bullet, but I believe it will begin to ameliorate these societal problems.
Well, that was a long-winded conclusion. I hope it was remotely interesting and that if anyone out there is considering trying to live car-free that you do give it a shot!
08/09/2009
Still loving being without a car. This past week I actually took a significant step in my quest to be car free: I have demonstrated my commitment and sold my car. Yay! No joking around now. Even though I have not driven my car since starting the Zipcar Low-Car Diet, only now I can I say that I am truly car free. Big step, right? I was pretty excited when I finally realized that I did it. Although, I must admit when I look out at its former parking spot that I feel some loss...
I tried recently to use the bike as my primary form of transportation. Before I had been relying predominantly on walking and the bus for commuting to work. I am surprised that biking can be a pretty effective and quick way to get around town. You can easily keep up with traffic, and there is no significant difference in the transportation times compared the car. The only disadvantage I can see is the fact that you have to carry around a bike lock; it becomes a pain when you have a number of errands to run and must dismount and lock at each location. Oh and the high density of hills in Seattle have proved to be quite the challenge. So the legs have been pretty sore lately.
Now with no car at all, I have also realized the ease that having a car offers: an instant availability to effortless travel. No need to have to consult a schedule or have to sprint up Queen Anne hill. So, I can understand the attraction of having a car, and how it has become such a fundamental part of our society. But if you can accept the challenge of avoiding driving everywhere and limit the number of trips to weekly than car sharing is the way to go. I must admit it will take more effort, but it is sincerely worth it!
08/01/2009
For my fellow environmentalists out there, forgoing a car and choosing car sharing will significantly impact emissions as a majority of greenhouse gases in the West are transportation-related. I will acknowledge that giving up a car may be challenging, and as many of our cities have been designed for the car, public transportation will take some extra initial effort. However, the bus system is great once one familiarizes his/herself with it and with the planned expansion of the Seattle light-rail system a car-free lifestyle is only going to be easier. Those who choose the car-based lifestyle are only going to enjoy the increasing traffic headache, exponential maintenance costs, and likely increased governmental regulations as the world begins to combat global warming. Hopefully Zipcar will add some electric cars as the technology improves! (***Psst, Zipcar techies here -- we're fans of electric cars too! Read about our pilot program for plug-in hybrid vehicles in San Francisco here and be sure to check out our brand new all-electric car-share pod in London!***)
In addition, for those of us hikers out there it is difficult for us to give up a car because we love nature and wish to enjoy it. I have really enjoyed the access to the many cars (even with AWD) with Zipcar in that I do not need to own a car, but can still can drive up into the mountains with friends for a romp in the woods. I am planning a hiking trip to Rainier as I write!
Plus, sharing a car permits one to feel real-time how expensive a car is and teaches one to limit at all costs its use. It becomes thoughtless if you own a vehicle to just use it whenever you are leaving home; you are paying for it every month, right? Might as well us it. Instead, sharing a car teaches you to limit your car use and plan your trips ahead of time to maximize efficiency. For those last-minute emergency trips there are always the hourly cars readily available.
I have and still am enjoying my car-free lifestyle, and I am surprised how relatively easy it is. So, have faith you can do it too!
07/24/2009
I recently took my first trip in a Zipcar. And what a relief that I had the option! Even though I have been doing just fine without a car, there do come times when having a car available is handy. I had returned home after a busy Saturday helping a friend move in to a new apartment. The move took longer than I had expected and as I needed to be over at the University in 30 minutes, I was naturally running late. So I jumped on the Metro Trip Planner to find a bus. The time was tight, but I ran my hardest only to find it had already passed. I was at the point of despair when I realized I could hop on zipcar.com and maybe find an available car nearby. I quickly returned to my place and luckily found a car nearby that had just been used by another Zipster. What luck! I quickly completed the reservation process and ran off the parking spot.
I approached a shiny, red Volvo S40 and flashed my Zipcard above the scanner. Doors unlock. "Wow," I thought, "Impressive." I awakened from my reverie and jumped in the car and sped off to UW, arriving just in time. Only upon the return of the car to its designated spot did I realize how incredible this experience was; the fact that I could log into my Zipcar account a moment before I needed a car, reserve one, and drive away in a clean, nice-looking car with a plenty of gas is truly revolutionary. I have been a skeptic of the car-sharing idea, but my experience has proved otherwise. Car sharing does work and can function effectively. Added to the relative ease of how car sharing works is that there is a great selection, too. For those who enjoy taking the occasional Sunday drive and may like to try new things, car sharing could be compared to having a garage of several dozen cars without the worry of insurance or maintenance. If I want to try driving around the new Honda Insight, I can hop on and reserve it. The next time I need a car I could be driving around in a sporty MINI Cooper. All this variety without the hassle. I love it!
07/17/2009
Week 1: car-free and I am feeling great! I walk about 2 miles to and from work every day (I must be honest; the ascent home, after a long day, is sometimes daunting). However, it is a time for listening to music, thinking lofty thoughts, and enjoying the freedom from traffic, parking, and all the other headaches that come with driving. I can recall times of the past... frustrated from being caught in the stagnant lines of cars breathing in the gasoline fumes. Walking through the residential streets, I now find myself refreshed and ready for the workday. I know that I am making a difference one day at a time. Frankly, despite the added effort, I am just a happier person!
This leads me to my primary theme of the week: health. Walking to and from work, not only do I cut my carbon emissions but I gain personal time and exercise. I can stop and talk to that barista (who I do not even have a chance with) who I could not even try for with juggling driving and parking. I can even vary my route home if I am interested in a longer workout. With some added push-ups at home, why would anyone need to pay for that gym membership? If every American tried to only walk 3 days a week, we would have a healthier nation and lower healthcare costs -- all for no added cost. With the elimination of a source of stress, we would be more positive and likely be more productive in the workplace. All at the same time putting more money in our pockets.
Wow. Health, happiness, and saving money. Who can complain?