To say car ownership shouldn't be seen as the default

[Sidslaw]

several posts on here about financial problems, all claiming the car is "needed" and not up for discussion

People tend to set up their lives with the assumption that they will drive - surely with the climate in the stat it is in it should now be the other way around? People to set up their lives with the assumption that they will not drive, as the default.

I don't drive, I am dyspraxic, so can't and always knew I wouldn't, and it has never been an issue, as I have chosen the places I live and the jobs I do on that basis. I use public transport, walking, cycling, taxis. I have raised my family as a single mother like this, and my children ( not dyspraxic) have grown up to set up their lives the same.

There is always going to be people who rightly or wrongly think they are an exception, but surely the default should be, don't own a car, don't drive?

But some of us have been both, I didn’t pass until I was 40. Driving has given me so much freedom.
I live in a large town, the transport across whole area is woeful. Driving meant I could take DD to activities I couldn’t previously and lots of days out to places that would be too hard to get to otherwise.
Im also not so reliant on DH. I worked somewhere which had numerous sites, I never could have worked for them using public transport. I spent years not applying for jobs because I knew I couldn’t get there.
Im furious with myself for not passing earlier.

I couldnt get to my job, earn what i earn, or most importantly, have my horses and compete if i didnt drive.
without the horses i don’t see the point in life for me.

@BintuBintu

Sorry but that's absurd (the hypocritical post). I simply referred to your statement - which you incorrectly accused me of thinking - and explained in the context of having a go at others it has some validity.

This is what some greens like you do. You twist words, you bully people into submission. It isn't going to work.

I drive a car and I'm not about to give it up anytime soon.
So shove that in your judgy pants and dance op.

I drive, my ds is about to start learning to drive and he knows this is none negotiable because of where we live. No, we are not moving to a city so we can use public transport.

I love having a car and being able to drive. I can get in it and go directly to where i want, no waiting around for a bus, i don't have to share my space or work out complicated time tables.

In my area, and the surrounding towns, the local bus company has just cut a TON of main route services so now it's not physically possible to get from my town to the next town at various times of day without a huge detour and multiple changes of bus. We are all baffled by this. People now can't actually get to work at all, despite having used buses for years.

Last few times i tried to use the bus to get the kids from school, because they like the novelty of the bus, no buses came for at least an hour. They're supposed to be every 7 minutes. They were having a driver shortage.

Also how do you get your weekly food shop on the bus?

If you're getting it delivered then you're just outsourcing the need for someone to drive for you.

I needed to take a taxi recently to collect my car from the garage. It was £10 to go on a journey that takes me 7 minutes by car. Taxis are for rich people. Bus would have taken about 1hr 30 presuming they were all on time, because id have needed a bus to the bus station then to the garage.

I think if you could drive, your life would be vastly different and you wouldn't be quite so smug about your lifestyle.

2 words op - house prices.
I don’t disagree in theory, but we are living in a time of hard choices. I cannot afford to live in regions with good public transport while wages do not cover the cost of living. And if it is so easy to fix the lack and expense of public transport “because we live in a democracy” then please go ahead and do it. Fix the housing while you’re at it - that will sort out half of the crime problems too. Do it by Saturday and I’ll move back on Sunday.

I certainly can imagine what is like to be without my car.

It would be utterly rubbish.

We don't all live in London with amazing public transport. I'll never give up my car exactly because i can see what it's like living where i do without one and it ain't pretty. But not everyone can afford to live in a city. Or wants to - my idea of hell.

Good for you

we live in a village with about 70 houses, a post office which is only open on Thursdays and nothing else. The bus comes once an hour. It takes 25 minutes for me to drive when the bus takes 60 minutes. Cycling to the city where we work isn’t possible - it’s a really dangerous road (there are even signs saying “high casualty route, take care) and our kids go to school half an hour in the opposite direction.

we live there because we can’t afford to live any closer to the city and it makes sense for us to drive

your grandparents may have not driven either but life was very different back then and not set up at the pace it is now

I’m not saying it shouldn’t but until public transport improves, and house pricing improves in the places where public transport is readily available…. YABU to assume everyone can easily set their lives up this way.

Setting the planet to one side, I'd far sooner live in a walkable tree-lined neighbourhood with brick paving than the many places in the US where six-lane 'stroads' lined with strip malls make the place look grey and depressing.

You're being entirely unreasonable as you're basing your assumption entirely on your situation. We have 1 car and plan to keep it that way for our life in the suburbs but often use public transport as with 2 sporty DC we can't be in the same place all the time.

I'm meeting a friend tomorrow somewhere which would take 30 mins to drive to but I'll bus it which will be 1 hr 45 mins each way. It's hardly a viable alternative for every day.

Hope you never need a community nurse or carer then. I live in a rural village a few miles from the village I grew up in had no choice but to learn to drive as there was only a bus per hour that went to one place and stopped at 6pm. I decided to stay near there I grew up because I love the countryside, my family are all here and I tried living in a city lasted a few months and wanted back home it was horrendous for my mental health.

I work in community nursing in that large rural area as we have the highest number or elderly and retired in Scotland, so what about them? Just don’t bother visiting them at home? And that’s not going to change till people stop thinking moving to retire here is a good option

What demographic do you suppose lives in that lovely tree lined street?

What demographic are the ones who have to live among the depressing strip malls?

So how is increased car dependency helping the poorest in society live in tree lined, pleasant streets? Hint: it’s not.

And how many of you actually did something about your local bus cuts, instead of shrug your shoulders and jump into your car?

It also depends on your skill set and what you do for a living. Not everyone can live on top of work. My husband rarely works in the same place two weeks running. We have an elderly relative who we care for who isn't on a bus route. Should we move him?
Not having a car is limiting in lots of ways. I want to go to the supermarket when it suits me. I don't want to go on the bus and I don't want to use a taxi as I might be doing something else on the way there or back. I don't want to make two trips.
If we want to go away for the weekend I don't want to be using public transport. It's unreliable. The timings limit where we can go.
I don't want to live in a city. I don't by any means live rurally but I have enough space to live a peaceful life.
Having a car gives us independence

Loads of people campaigned against it. It still happened.

I didn't campaign. I don't have the energy to campaign against something that doesn't affect me at all because the buses could be the most well run, clean, efficient thing and i still wouldn't use them.

....because every woman wants to be standing at a bus stop on their own at 10 o'clock at night when they've finished their shift to be dropped of 15 minutes from their house and walk through a park / side streets...

YANBU OP

And in rural areas not served well by public transport near me, elderly people who chose to retire there are finding that they cannot access personal care in their home. Rural Airbnb hosts can’t get cleaners to do the changeovers etc.

And to the person who mentioned food shopping, delivery by electric van with a properly organized delivery route is far more carbon efficient than individuals going to the supermarket in their cars. Even regular van deliveries are better.

I’d happily switch if it was realistic. Even at London borders though a ten min drive can be 50min on buses. It was incompatible with nursery drop off and work when they were younger not to drive, I struggled as it was to get to work. I was a teacher too, so could pick jobs in a reason and distance. Did you never find this hard?
Also the cost was a factor. A London travel card compared to an old banger cost more, before I even started on out of town journeys. A family train ticket to go somewhere else is easily £70-250. My annual car insurance is £240 for comparison.
I tried not to drive but the pressure built up. For a hospital appt for ds my day was:
30min-bus to nursery
45min-bus to work
reverse for appt then 30min to hospital,
reverse all back to work
reverse back to work
That’s 6 hours of bus, not counting the waiting on the roadside

It became 5 min to nursery, 20 to work
10 min to hospital
Total 2 hours
popping out from work for an hour or two is understandable, I’d have been sacked carrying on with regular appointments like the first option

Puddycatfan, a bicycle goes right to your front door

You know lots of us don't have the kind of life that has the time to cycle or bus places?

I'd need substantially more hours in the day to live my life without a car.

house - stables - work = 14mins & 8mins
There is no bus route to either of those (you can't work in my office unless you drive, not one person cycles)
You couldn't pay me all the money in the world to cycle though. I'd need a trailer for all my stuff 😂

Well as someone who can’t drive due to a seizure my life has become extremely limited, burdensome and honestly crap. I don’t think it I know it. Not limited think just my reality.

I can just imagine a taxi drivers face if they turn up and I ask them to tow my horse trailer.

Or fill their boot with hay. Or maybe I should try taking bales on a bike….

That’s after I have moved the horses to be on a bus route.

Will nobody think of the ponies 😆

@AlltheFs has a good point though, we don't all lead limited lives precisely because we have cars!
My daughter is a regular at the stables and after a day there it is unlikely many taxis would want to bring her home.
I don't care if my car stinks of horse or sweat after my son has been boxing but I could well imagine the uproar on here if someone had to sit next to either of them on public transport.