Cities that you don't need a car? (living, prices)
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It's not about density of population, it's availability of alternate methods of transportation than a car. I lived in a village in England that only had one bus a day in and out. Life would have been easier with a car but I didnt need one, I managed fine without by being organized. But where I live now just outside Chicago you can't even walk places safely because there aren't any sidewalks and the roads are too busy, even though way more people live in this village than the English one.
But density of population certainly has a relationship with the feasibility of public transportation. It's not a guaranteed method of determining if you don't need a car, but a good indicator.
Your example of the small English town was an ok example for not needing a car, but not great. What if you had to travel out of town at hours that were at odds with the bus' schedule? Let's say that town was twice as big and denser, do you think it'd be more likely that there would be more bus service? There may be extreme examples where that's not the case, but I'd argue it's more likely.
The US is different than most of the world because everything is so auto-dependent. Any density under 4k could mean that they're sprawling suburbs that aren't served by public transport. If you go above 4k (or even at 4k), you're very likely to at least have bus service and hopefully some sidewalks.
Looking it up I'd guess you don't need a car in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It's very densely populated and most of Bangladesh's people apparently don't even have cars. I've heard Scandinavian cities are often not car-oriented.
Like most major international cities, there is no need for a car if you live in or around Seoul, South Korea. I lived about an hour south of there and frequently used their public transportation; mainly the subway but they also have different kinds of buses and taxis. People do have cars there but I couldn't imagine owning one and driving thru all that traffic!
Looking it up I'd guess you don't need a car in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It's very densely populated and most of Bangladesh's people apparently don't even have cars. I've heard Scandinavian cities are often not car-oriented.
I think its worth bearing in mind that some cities have low car ownership for reasons other than their excellent public transport systems, and that the definition of 'need' various quite considerably between, say, the US and Bangladesh...
It's fascinating how - with respect to the US - people have a distorted view of public transport (I'm assuming mostly outside the US):
- San Francisco has mediocre public transit, at best, with streetcars, a limited BART set of lines, and buses. SF's public transit system isn't anywhere near as robust as Boston's, for example.
- Chicago, which is completely absent from this list, has one of the best public transit systems in the US - certainly better than Philadelphia and - probably - Boston.
- Where's Washington D.C.? The metro and affiliated buses is fabulous (certainly compared to many other cities).
- Also, there are a number of American cities - like San Diego and even LA - that have belatedly begun to put mass transit systems in place. I'm keeping my fingers crossed, but I'm hoping we'll see a lot more light rail development in the US as gas prices inevitably rise.
I think its worth bearing in mind that some cities have low car ownership for reasons other than their excellent public transport systems, and that the definition of 'need' various quite considerably between, say, the US and Bangladesh...
Yeah, I almost did add "Probably few of them can afford cars" but I thought that could sound insulting. Still either way they do make do without cars I reckon.
My sister feels she needs a car when she's in Japan as she doesn't always get the train schedule right and being American she probably likes the idea of traveling outside the city on her own. Still I think Japanese cities are fairly non-car oriented.
Just a hunch but I'd say there aren't many little girls in the Home Counties (London suburbia) that go to Saturday afternoon gymnastics class on public transport...
A car is a neccessity for families with small children in most cites.
Agree very much. I grew up in India, and although we had buses/rail, it would have been a nightmare without a car. I would say having a car is makes your life a hundred times easier in any city in India, not least because the public transport is often overcrowded, erratic, unsafe, or slow.
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