I parked my car out back on Sunday, and it hasn't moved since (today is Wednesday by the way :p) It even took me an hour to get $17 worth of groceries today because I decided to walk to the grocery store.

Of course, to be fair, I am on vacation. I don't have work or school to drive to. I'm going to see how long I can leave my car parked out back before I go nuts!

I really wish this city had public transit (I used to enjoy my trips on the bus before I moved here).

Where do you live?

Right now I am in Charlottetown, PEI.

They had tried to implement a sub-standard public transit system but nobody would support it :no:

I've always thought Charlottetown was too small for a bus system. It would be lovely, but unfortunately, it's not something that's going to happen.

Good luck with trying not to use the car, though!

There is a fairly efficient bus system in Fredericton (at least it served my needs when I was there)... and there aren't a whole lot more people there than there are here :confused:

And Ch'town is a bit more condensed than Fredericton, so it would be a bit easier. The problem is more in the attitudes here - people just aren't interested in a public transit system.

Having a home business is really good for not using the car. Mine has been parked in the driveway all day, and all day yesterday; the only trip I took all week was to the grocery store. The Internet is a wonderful thing.

One does tend to go a bit stir-crazy sitting at home 24/7, alas. And I'm in the suburbs, so there's really no place one can walk to. I miss the SF Bay Area... <sigh>

LM

I try to think of it this way: every trip I don't make with my car is an improvement. I only needed one thing at the grocery store today, and I couldn't justify using the fuel to go get that one thing. So I walked.. only about a 20 minute walk each way, although the thunderclouds were threatening to burst :p Plus, I really need the exercise!!!!

we try to walk everywhere we can, but the car certainly is tempting. We live in Boston, we have great public transportation, but sadly, I need a car for my commute (I work outside of the city.) I LOVE using the subway and, of course, my feet, to get around. Good for you for trying to make a difference! :-)

There is a fairly efficient bus system in Fredericton (at least it served my needs when I was there)... and there aren't a whole lot more people there than there are here :confused:

And Ch'town is a bit more condensed than Fredericton, so it would be a bit easier. The problem is more in the attitudes here - people just aren't interested in a public transit system.


I haven't been in Fredericton in a long time, I didn't know it had a bus system. Spiffy. Maybe there is hope for Charlottetown.

You could also get a bicycle, but that wouldn't do you much good starting in November or so.

I considered the bicycle option once I moved into town in January (I had lived 15 minutes out of town so it wasn't an option). Right now I live quite close to the Confederation Trail, which goes right past the university. But I have no where to store the bike - my apartment is too small as it is, and I'm not comfortable locking it up outside.

*sigh*

I got my auto insurance renewal today - it has been increased by 30% :spew:

I hate cars :brood:

Shop around - there are so many competing insurance companies now - also Esurance does everthing digitally, so no paper waste! Check them out.

I am in a similar situation - my registration and insurance are due to be renewed soon, and I am trying to sell the Jeep and get a bike, but so far no luck. I think I may just try to drive it only in emergencies, or trade it for a Civic or Jetta.

The worst part is I *have* shopped around, and this company is consistently the cheapest, so I really have very little right to complain. :p

The battery will die if you leave your car sitting for too long.

Don't worry about that! I only have a month until I will be needing it on a daily basis, and I still need it to get any groceries that I can't simply carry home. Actually, I took it out last night (I went to visit my dog). Put 6kms on it since Sunday. Woohoo :)

My license is expired and I now have to take the driving test to get a new one. Blah. (Silly me. I thought my license expired with my plates and I was going to switch my plates and my license from Indiana to Ohio at the same time. Oops.) Therefore, my car has been driven little in the past few months, except when I feel like tempting fate and drive anyway.:devil: The grocery is a short walk. It's not cheap overall, but they have good sale prices and they double coupons. And my husband and I go out enough that I can go to the cheaper stores, too.

I've been using the bus system. It's nice, but can get annoying. I miss the privacy of my car. The solitude. I don't think I'll stick with my car once I get my license, but the options (legally, even, he he) will be cool.

My car isn't working (gas tank leak) so I haven't been driving it at all. My husband replaced it with a used Echo (40 miles per gallon) but I feel like that's "his car" so I haven't been driving it. We can't use public transport because we live in the country; we try not to drive into town on a whim, but plan our trips.

what about getting a bike for transportation purposes?

I considered the bicycle option once I moved into town in January (I had lived 15 minutes out of town so it wasn't an option). Right now I live quite close to the Confederation Trail, which goes right past the university. But I have no where to store the bike - my apartment is too small as it is, and I'm not comfortable locking it up outside.


Although I am tempted to take the risk of having it stolen....

My parents never had a car. My grandparents didn't have a car. I don't have a car. When you've never had one, it's pretty simple to get used to! Thankfully, I now live in a city with a great bus system, and I have a spiffy bike, so it's really easy for me to get around unless it's out of the city limits.

Enjoy the execise and fresh air, fyvel!

My parents never had a car. My grandparents didn't have a car. I don't have a car. When you've never had one, it's pretty simple to get used to! Thankfully, I now live in a city with a great bus system, and I have a spiffy bike, so it's really easy for me to get around unless it's out of the city limits.

Enjoy the execise and fresh air, fyvel!

I actually spent three years in one city that had a bus system without a car, and I *loved* it. The only exception was when I got a lot of groceries (more than I could carry on the bus): I would take the bus to the grocery store and take a cab home. When I moved here, I was parctically forced to buy a car: no transit system, and no half decent places to rent with a dog within miles of the city. Bah. At least now I am more centrally located and actually able to walk to the store if I so desire.

Wow. I really admire anyone who can live without a car. Personally, I DESPISE cars. I'm studying to get my license now, but I'm way behind all of my friends. Today, I was taking a walk next to a busy street, and I remembered one reason I waited so long. Cars are an annoying example of modern consumerism, and they're dangerous. Etc.

Wow. I really admire anyone who can live without a car. Personally, I DESPISE cars. I'm studying to get my license now, but I'm way behind all of my friends. Today, I was taking a walk next to a busy street, and I remembered one reason I waited so long. Cars are an annoying example of modern consumerism, and they're dangerous. Etc.

Yeah there are a LOT of crazy drivers out there too.

I have seen a guy rolling around on a Segway from time to time. I would love to have one of those. My only peeve about those is it wold encourage people to use it instead of walking when the distances were shorter. And I can't imagine they handle too well in the snow :rolleyes:

Oh, which is another pet peeve of mine and sort of on topic. Some people need SUV's and big massive trucks with 4 wheel drive. If you do NEED one, that is fine. But if you don't, please don't try to justify it by making up silly excuses, like you need it for the winter time. Sure, I'm sure there are areas where you actually need a huge-mobile in the winter time. I'm also sure they're few and far between - as most places do have plows. And most places, if the roads are THAT bad, will shut down most everything anyways.

In my experience, huge vehicles do not handle any better in the winter time than my little-barely-off-the-ground car. In fact, I've driven my father's truck (which he does not NEED but that is another story) in the winter time and it handles miserably. 4 wheel drive is good for getting you out if you're stuck in mud in snow. It is an absolute nightmare on ice.

For the past two winters I have driven my barely-off-the-ground-really-good-on-gas car. The only time I got it stuck when I was driving home through blowing snow, the guy had not yet arrived to clear out the driveway. I couldn't see very well due to the blowing snow and tried to take it through a drift on the driveway (which I have done quite successfully before). The drift was way bigger than I thought it was. Haha. Big enough that yes, even a 4 wheel drive monster would have been stuck. My bad.

So when people here try to justify driving a huge-mobile around all year long because of a fear of "getting stuck", it makes my blood boil. :furious:

Yeah there are a LOT of crazy drivers out there too.

I have seen a guy rolling around on a Segway from time to time. I would love to have one of those. My only peeve about those is it wold encourage people to use it instead of walking when the distances were shorter. And I can't imagine they handle too well in the snow :rolleyes:

Oh, which is another pet peeve of mine and sort of on topic. Some people need SUV's and big massive trucks with 4 wheel drive. If you do NEED one, that is fine. But if you don't, please don't try to justify it by making up silly excuses, like you need it for the winter time. Sure, I'm sure there are areas where you actually need a huge-mobile in the winter time. I'm also sure they're few and far between - as most places do have plows. And most places, if the roads are THAT bad, will shut down most everything anyways.

In my experience, huge vehicles do not handle any better in the winter time than my little-barely-off-the-ground car. In fact, I've driven my father's truck (which he does not NEED but that is another story) in the winter time and it handles miserably. 4 wheel drive is good for getting you out if you're stuck in mud in snow. It is an absolute nightmare on ice.

For the past two winters I have driven my barely-off-the-ground-really-good-on-gas car. The only time I got it stuck when I was driving home through blowing snow, the guy had not yet arrived to clear out the driveway. I couldn't see very well due to the blowing snow and tried to take it through a drift on the driveway (which I have done quite successfully before). The drift was way bigger than I thought it was. Haha. Big enough that yes, even a 4 wheel drive monster would have been stuck. My bad.

So when people here try to justify driving a huge-mobile around all year long because of a fear of "getting stuck", it makes my blood boil. :furious:

I'm glad I'm not the only one annoyed by SUVs and the like...
I like when people try to justify purchases of giant vehicles by saying that they make them feel safer. The majority of people who drive massive vehicles have no idea how to actually drive them safely.

Oh, and to go along with the original post here, I'm parking my car tomorrow and taking my bike to work the rest of the week (I would have biked today, but it was heavily storming by the time I needed to leave. Heavy rain+heavy traffic=no biking fun)

I'm glad I'm not the only one annoyed by SUVs and the like...
I like when people try to justify purchases of giant vehicles by saying that they make them feel safer. The majority of people who drive massive vehicles have no idea how to actually drive them safely.

Oh, and to go along with the original post here, I'm parking my car tomorrow and taking my bike to work the rest of the week (I would have biked today, but it was heavily storming by the time I needed to leave. Heavy rain+heavy traffic=no biking fun)

Not to mention that all those SUVs ont he road make driving more dangerous for the rest of us. I remember seeing some stats on accidents between SUVs and smaller cars. The chances aren't too great for those in the smaller vehicle. Which leads to people driving smaller vehicles feeling that they need bigger vehicles to feel safe. Argh.

One evening I was walking around downtown with a fried. We saw a huge red Hummer. Then we saw it again. And again. This guy was just driving around and around downtown to show off his stupid vehicles. Stupid boxes on wheels :rolleyes:

Mem, hopefully the weather will be more favorable for the rest of the week!

One evening I was walking around downtown with a fried. We saw a huge red Hummer.
I can't understand WHY IN THE WORLD anyone would buy a hummer. Do people need to be able to store gunware in the car, or what?