Living in Dallas without a car (Spring, Hudson: apartments, houses, neighborhoods)

[Joby G]

Regarding the ticket checks, they DO happen. I assure you. I think they tend to happen more during rush hour. It is totally random but I've been checked a couple of times. For me, it's easy as I have to take a bus to the rail station, so I buy my ticket for the day on the bus. I do know that some folks are not buying there tickets, but let them take their chances.

It just isn't practical to run a ticket on the train the way DART does on the buses. When I board a bus, it is usually just myself at the stop unless I'm at a transit center where the buses usually stop for a spell anyways.

Far more people board and de-board the trains, however, especially at rush hour. The train would have to stop at each station for a minimum of 3-4 minutes to allow de-boarding and then boarding while everyone runs their ticket electronically. Manually is out of the question as well as there are simply not enough DART police or inspectors for every car.

I know it irks some people. It irks me, but the current system of random checks is best as there is simply no other way, at least not one I'm aware of.

[aceplace]

Originally Posted by Moth

I lived in Dallas for a year and did the first 6 months without a car. I had come from New York where a car is a hindrance/luxury and there is also excellent public transportation. I had never owned a car in my life.

I lived in Addison near a transit hub and worked in Farmers Branch. Commuting to work was a breeze. Twenty minute ride on a modern bus where you always got a seat. And a pass was a paltry 15 bucks a month or something like that.

I did have to get creative when it came to grocery shopping. A friend would drive me and I would buy him a bottle of hooch as payment. I would buy a titanic amount of groceries. After awhile, and I am not boasting, I dated a girl who drove me around.

I tried to do the bike thing, but that did not really work. Addison is small so there were places I could walk to including several gin joints so no DWI worries.

So it can be done as I and others have attested. But I will tell you that after awhile it gets on your nerves. Convenience is a no brainer, especially in a large sprawl like DFW. Then there are the social ramifications. Most people thought I was completely out of my mind. And I noticed that if you walk anywhere, people there actually heckle you as they speed on by. And try to be active on the singles scene in Dallas with no wheels

I finally broke down and bought my first car ever. I liked it very much.

So yea, its possible to live there or pretty much anywhere without a car. I guess the question is, do you want to? I am back East now and continue to have a car, but am not nearly as dependent on it as I was in Dallas.

Great OP.

Interesting post, but I did notice one thing.

Do people tend to equate living in the DFW metro with living in Manhattan?

It is an apples to oranges comparison. Perhaps you might legitimately compare downtown/Uptown Dallas to living in Manhattan (???), but living in Addison would compare to living in Stamford, Connecticut, perhaps. A much more auto-centric place. living in Plano or Frisco would be comparable to living out in Long Island somewhere, where most people would own a car and drive.

My sister used to live in a suburb called Stratford. Although part of the New York metro, the place would be impossible to live without a car. Just like Frisco or Arlington would be. Sure, Stratford has a train into Manhattan... but North Arlington has a train to DT Dallas.

[Moth]

Originally Posted by aceplace

Interesting post, but I did notice one thing.

Do people tend to equate living in the DFW metro with living in Manhattan?

It is an apples to oranges comparison. Perhaps you might legitimately compare downtown/Uptown Dallas to living in Manhattan (???), but living in Addison would compare to living in Stamford, Connecticut, perhaps. A much more auto-centric place. living in Plano or Frisco would be comparable to living out in Long Island somewhere, where most people would own a car and drive.

My sister used to live in a suburb called Stratford. Although part of the New York metro, the place would be impossible to live without a car. Just like Frisco or Arlington would be.

I am not comparing them at all and would agree that they are apples and oranges.

I mentioned it so as to explain in detail why I did not procure a car upon moving there. It was not a money issue. Rather, it was psychological to some extent- I had never owned one or even thought about owning one. I knew nothing about car insurance or how to buy one (yes I could drive). So in a way I stalled for 6 months which resulted in being creative.

[aceplace]

Originally Posted by Moth

I am not comparing them at all and would agree that they are apples and oranges.

I mentioned it so as to explain in detail why I did not procure a car upon moving there. It was not a money issue. Rather, it was psychological to some extent- I had never owned one or even thought about owning one. I knew nothing about car insurance or how to buy one (yes I could drive). So in a way I stalled for 6 months which resulted in being creative.

Oh, I quite understand, and I meant no reflection on you and your personal choices. If I sounded critical, I did not intend to be.

In many cases, though, people do in fact compare the DFW area, almost all of which is auto-oriented, to the dense, central portions of cities where cars are inconvenient. And that is, of course, not a particularly interesting situation. Of course they are dissimilar. If you compare Dallas to Boston, you really should include the Boston suburbs and exurbs, where cars are necessary for basic transportation. comparing Frisco to Cambridge is as meaningless as comparing Lowell, Mass to Uptown Dallas.

Actually, I'd consider Addison as not a very good candidate for a carless Dallas existence. You will be surrounded by a society of people who do drive everywhere they go. Yes, there is a dense residential and commercial district in places like Addison Circle, but it's not enough to justify going without a car. Downtown Dallas or southern Uptown or walking distance to a DART rail station would be closer to that ideal.

Actually, what Dallas needs is an outfit like Flex, where you can rent a car by the hour when you need to fetch groceries, or drive to Arlington.

[Korel]

Originally Posted by Jimrob1

I have been reading this carless in Dallas thread. I was interested in your comment about ticket checking on the train. It is a big beef of mine in Portland, one could ride indefinitely and the ticket/pass is never checked. It is obvious people are not paying, yet we have fare increases twice a year. We now pay $2.35 for a ticket and it goes up again in January. In fact I am going to start a thread on how many cities with light rail are actually checking tickets. The Dart system seems like it is becoming a more extensive system and one day would be much easier to live there without a car. But it obvioulsy can be done to some extent anyway.

Interesting that you should mention ticket checking. Last year we took our grand kids to the circus at the AA Center. We went through all the trouble to obtain tickets from the kiost, boarded the train (red line from Plano) and rode all the way to AA center, and return home, and nobody checked. There were a few what I felt were freeloaders that from all appearances didn't have a ticket. I just didn't want to get thrown from the train!

[jrwdtd]

I live and work downtown and gave up my car 3 years ago. I never drove it so I decided to sell it and give living without it a try. It is not bad at all if you live in or around downtown because the DART options are much greater. It is definately an adjustment but I learned to walk, bike, take taxis, DART, and if I really needed a car then I could just rent one. You learn very quickly that, when shopping, you get everything you need and only what you need. I used to have my groceries delivered and was not happy when that stopped. Now there is UrbanMarket downtown. I have gotten to see more of Dallas by not driving. And the money I have saved...wno car payment, no insurance payment, no parking expenses. My DART pass costs me 500.00 for an annual pass and it pays for itself very quickly. I love not having a car and have no plans anytime soon to purchase one!

[aaronyoung777]

haha i have a 32 mile commute to work one way...I attempting to jog one day to work, but I was late...Dallas is WAAAAAY too big to be without a car. If I could, mine would sit in the garage all the time.

[aceplace]

Originally Posted by aaronyoung777

haha i have a 32 mile commute to work one way...I attempting to jog one day to work, but I was late...Dallas is WAAAAAY too big to be without a car. If I could, mine would sit in the garage all the time.

People in New York also have 32 mile commutes. So I guess New York is also way too big to be without a car.

[heyboi]

apples/oranges

[aceplace]

Originally Posted by heyboi

apples/oranges

Yeah, sometimes I eat an apple on my 32 mile commute, sometimes I eat an orange.

What's the difference? Well, an apple is appropriate for a 32 mile commute in New York (the Big Apple, right).

I guess the orange would be appropriate for a 32 mile commute in LA (the big Orange, yes?)

What about a 32 mile commute in Dallas? What's our cullinary symbol? The Big Burrito?

One way or another, the only difference between a 32-miler in the Big Apple and a 32 miler in the Big D is the choice of diet...