No Wheels, No Problem!
Today marks the 1year anniversary of me doing without a car. Last year today my lease on my Honda Accord was up and I made a conscious decision to experiment living without a car in US (I didn’t have a car back in Iran but I was a student living on campus back then and Iran is a different world). Initially, I thought I will wait for fall (I was planning to bike to work in spring/summer) and then buy/lease one.
Well, fall and winter came and passed by and I didn’t feel like I need a car anymore! It has been a year and I can say that I am happy with my decision. No wheels for me 
. If you live in an urban area (I wouldn’t suggest it for suburbs), it is possible to live without a car. Here are some statistics about my commute experience that I find interesting (warning: plenty of assumptions; not a scientific calculation)
| Miles Walked | 480 |
| Miles Biked | 650 |
| Miles Bused | 3,575 |
| Total Miles Traveled | 4,705 |
|---|---|
| Gas Savings | $454.82 |
| Car Payment Savings | $4,200.00 |
| Insurance Savings | $1,200.00 |
| Total Savings | $5,854.82 |
| Approximate CO2 Emissions Avoided | 1.3 Tons |
Now, I need to find a green way to blow that 6 grand! any suggestions?
Well done (for selling your car) and well written (for the article and the calculations)… I hope I can do the same sometime soon. But I live in suburbs, and that’s a different story I guess.
Vahid
April 16, 2007 at 9:05 pm
I agree with you Vahid. If you live in suburbs, it’s much harder (if not practically impossible) to go without a car.
Shayan
April 16, 2007 at 10:43 pm