To ask if you have successfully become a one car family

I bloody wish. Seems to be a car required for every occasion.

We've only ever had one car. If you wfh and husband takes the train, I don't see any reason you need 2 tbh.

We have one car. Works fine for us: car insurance, MOT etc all paid for just one car. When we aren't WFH, we commute to work by train, which usually involves us travelling to the station at the same time and paying parking fee for one car. Sometimes we don't travel back at the same time for a variety of reasons but I find that even if one of us has to take taxi back from the station, it's still cheaper than having to pay to insure, maintain or park another car all the time.

I guess it really depends on what your family's needs are. I have quite a few retired neighbours, who still keep two cars, but I am not really sure whether that's because they really need two or it's just a lifetime habit.

We had one car right through my dcs childhood, at first i couldn't drive but once I passed we managed fine in a mid sized city with one. Exh rode his bike to work, in theory so could I or both could walk, in reality I drove and dropped him off if weather was bad as we worked close by. On weekends it means communication is key if doing things needing a car and I did end up dropping him off places so i could keep the car then collecting him later (eg cricket or golf.

It doesn't work if you live more rurally i expect unless you very aligned lives.

I'm now moved and remarried, have 2 cars as work in opposite directions! We'll drop to one car once retired, though he has a motorcycle so still have 2 vehicles

We've only ever had one car. It's not really that hard if you live in an urban area. We walk or use the bus. But some people seem to develop cold sweats at the thought of public transport.

Ha ha this reminds me of when I went to a University reunion and happened to mention to an old fellow student, who was now a Consultant Surgeon in Yorkshire, that I had had to change plans last minute to come by car because the trains were not running that day.

I said that this meant my husband and son had had to get an Uber to my son’s activity that day.

He looked at me in disbelief and, after a pause said “Oh, is that a London thing then, only having one car?”

He knew we were financially able to afford 2 cars. It literally did not compute that we might choose not to 😂.

We use the car for everything nearly, but went down to 1 when our second car died and we couldn't afford to replace it. I was about 6 months into mat leave with my first.

I found it super annoying at first as dh kept wanting to take the car to work which meant I either had to get me and baby up to drop him or be stuck at home/local with baby but since he got a job in walkable distance it's much easier. We have 3 kids and their school is too far away to walk and no bus. I work part time. Most days I have the car and either drop dh when I take the kids to school or he walks.

The most annoying thing is having to have such a big car- we need it for when we're all in it particularly for holidays but I'd much prefer a smaller car for running around locally. And compromising on the car - this one wouldn't have been my choice but since its a shared car I had to suck it up! But its definitely fine for us and as I say this is in a situation where public transport isn't available. I think if I were full time in my old job though (teacher) we'd need two.

If you wfh and DH gets the train surely you don’t need 2 cars?

We run 1 car because we don’t both drive to work.

We’re testing it at the moment after someone wrote off our old car. We’ve banked the insurance money and will use it for taxis and the like where we need to. We do live in a city though, and have a station within five minutes walk. We also both work from home, and if we do go into the office it’s walkable or trainable.

Our problem will be ferrying kids to different sports activities but DD is injured so we won’t be able to test that until later in the summer.

There have been a couple of instances where it would have been much easier to have two cars, but we’re alright for now.

We live on two bus routes and have only ever had one car. DD bought her own when she learned to drive. We have access to overground and tube stations as well and local shops are within walking distance as was primary school. So I suppose we demonstrate what Rated Doing Magic has said. if you live in what I would call the ‘middle of nowhere’ with no public transport then you probably do need two cars. As the GC grow up and we are needed less we are beginning to think we may not need a car at all.

I think this thread highlights the use of public transport being a major part of the choice to use cars less.

Haven't governments been banging in about nationwide public transport being freely available.
It seems that we'd be happy to use it.

Not financially viable so why does each successive government keep up the stupid promises.

We've only ever had one car. Couldn't afford two. We purposely moved close to a train station. When I was going we had no car.

We’ve always been a one car family, never been able to afford 2 cars. Could now but no need. Our one car is new and our one luxury.

Dh used to take the car to work years ago, I’d be stuck in the village with the dses but it’s got trains and buses if needed. He then started getting the train and I had the car.

These days I use the car for work, dh is retired. Both dses are at university and don’t drive yet.

No room on the driveway for another car anyway.

I'd like to do this but I'd have to move house. If you live somewhere where it is possible to walk/cycle/public transport to the things you need to get to, albeit less convenient, I'd go for it. If you live somewhere where you'd just have to sacrifice hobbies or work if the car was in use, it's probably not worth it.

We've only ever had one car but we've consciously arranged our lives so we don't need two cars. We bought a house that was walking distance from both our workplaces, school, shops etc. We rarely need to use the car and both prefer to walk for health benefits.
Obviously it wouldn't work to have one car if we both worked far away or needed the car for shopping, school etc.
Our car is for occasionally taking the kids to activities or friends houses and days out/holidays. That's it.
It's perfectly doable (for many people, not all) in my opinion.

We were a 0 car couple (lived in London pre kids) and became a 1 car family around the time we had our first and moved out. I use the car as a last resort; if I can walk I do, if there is public transport that doesn’t add too much time or cost I use it, we commute by bike and train never the car, school run is always on foot/scooters. It works for us but a lot of that is about proximity to station and bus routes.

No we are a one car per person family
All of us have jobs that involve travelling county wide on a daily basis and we live in a rural village with infrequent buses which is not on a train line
DP has a car and works van and travels U.K. wide on call - he could be in Aberdeen 1 day and Folkestone 2 days later

We’re in our 50s and only had on car until 4 years ago when DS turned 17. It was only then we got a second old run around that he could learn to drive in and we could use as a 2nd car. It should be noted that DH has always been happy to cycle to work though so I guess it depends how far your commute is.

DH and I both need our cars for our jobs so it would be impossible for us. We're also in an area where public transport is incredibly unreliable.

We still have 2, despite being retired and having very good public transport. However I hardly use mine (I get the bus/train) - dh uses it a lot more. His is quite a bit older, bigger and more comfortable, plus economical with fuel, and used only for long journeys - of more than say 100 miles.

It incurs the ULEZ charge now so that’s a further reason for long journeys only, like the 7 hour drive to France we’ll be doing next week.

We have talked about it, but we need 2 cars, really. We live in suburban Hampshire, but public transport is sparse. I need a car (Mazda 2 runabout) to go to my ad hoc work as my workplace is unreachable otherwise, and DH needs a car (the estate) to do the family admin (he's retired). Also, we go to the dump twice a month, and we need an estate car for that.

If there existed a cheap local hire scheme, that would be great, but like most, when we need 2 cars, we need them.

Neither me or my ex husband has a car. Public transport or Ubers all the way!

We manage. Semi-rural with a decent bus service to the nearest town. I walk or cycle most places, kids walk or bus to school. Bus to town for swimming etc. Car pool once a week for hobby - I never drive but have the other kids over loads at the weekend to make up for it. Hire a car once or twice a year for visitors via a local car-sharing app.

Ho on earth is it cheaper? I can only take 6 uber trips into town or the nearest train station a month for the same money it costs me to run my car.

We have only ever had 1 car. Husband only recently learned to drive after our son was born and we moved outside of London and to a semi rural area.
So for the longest time we had excellent public transport for most things and DH worked in central London so there was just no need.
I did do a fair bit of running him around when he needed it but I was happy to.

Since moving we have considered a 2nd car as it is much easier to feel 'trapped' here, but so far just like pp have said on the odd occasion we have a need for it we use a taxi or find another workaround.
We both work from home, purposefully bought a house in a village with a range of amenities and all of the schools are walking distance.

If we had a 2nd child that would probably be what tips us over to needing another car though, so i totally recognise my particular circumstances make it easier to have 1 car.