Can you live in Des Moines without owning a car? (Burlington: neighborhood, living in)

[capitalcityguy]

Originally Posted by funksoulbro

It's not his decision to own/not own a car that is invoking criticism. Such a decision is a personal matter not worthy of press coverage, even in the smallest of Iowa towns.

Instead, it's the tone of this article which is rather peculiar. Virtually every city in Iowa with a population of 20,000 or more has public transit options available. MuscaBus has an extensive route system in a city of 23,000 people. You could easily live downtown and commute to work at any number places around Muscatine. They even have Saturday service if you needed to go grocery shopping or pick up some tube socks at the Super Wal-Mart.

I'm also pretty sure there's no law against carpooling or calling a friend to drive you somewhere in Muscatine. So, Des Moines isn't the only city in Iowa where you can go all "BIG CITY" and ditch the automobile completely. It's probably just as much an inconvenience in Muscatine as it is in Des Moines. Yet, the article in DMJuice takes on this whole only-in-Des-Moines mantra which is what draws ridicule.

What you're missing isn't the question of whether you can or not, it is if it is feasible/reasonable to do so. This shows it is feasible in his instance because he can both get where he needs to AND save himself money not owning a car. A lot of that has to do with that fact he chose to live in an urban neighborhood that has regular bus routes and is walkable/bikeable to many places/necessities. His example is especially noteworthy because he works in the suburbs. ie....it is a lot easier to not own a car if you both live and work within walking/bicycling distance.

There are plenty of other places in the DM metro this wouldn't work.

The article is relevant because you often hear "you can't live in Des Moines without owning a car". The article simply shows one instance where a guy is. It doesn't say it is feasable for everyone, living and working anywhere in the metro.

[tollfree]

He could save significantly more money if he lived close to work and still used whichever buses he takes out in the suburbs. Of course, living in the suburbs might be worse than jail to these "DM IS BIG CITY" types.

[capitalcityguy]

^ it says he works at Kum & Go headquarters which is stuck in the middle of a suburban business park. There is no housing nearby and assuming you know where this is, you'd agree it would be a death trap on bike.

So no, if you work in the suburbs you are even more restricted to where you can live without a car due to fewer available bus service routes.

[duster1979]

I think the hardest thing about living in Des Moines without a car would be going to the store, which of course encompasses everything.

[tollfree]

Originally Posted by capitalcityguy

^ it says he works at Kum & Go headquarters which is stuck in the middle of a suburban business park. There is no housing nearby and assuming you know where this is, you'd agree it would be a death trap on bike.

So no, if you work in the suburbs you are even more restricted to where you can live without a car due to fewer available bus service routes.

0.7 miles from Sun Prairie Apartments in West Des Moines. That's very far. There's a sidewalk that goes all the way up 60th st parallel to the road and crosses the interstate (there's a guardrail between the sidewalk and road for that portion). Then, he would make a left on Westown Parkway, which has a sidewalk as well. Would be there in under 5 minutes.

If he owned a small economic car - and didn't drive it beyond work at all, he would only have to put gas a few times a year (he might even get free/discounted gas working at Kum & Go corporate), and could be there in under 2 minutes. It's about making a statement on his end, you'll believe anything though.

Anyways, I'll leave it at that before you bring up oil change fees and how he's saving big there.

[capitalcityguy]

OK...I stand corrected. If he desires living in a huge apartment complex and enjoys a bicycle commute alongside heavily traveled feeder streets, then yes, he has that option. Also, must love competing with peds on the sidewalk.

You do realize that fuel is only a portion of the expense of owning a car, don't you? Depreciation, insurance, taxes, licensing, and yes, maintaince/oil changes.

[ElleTea]

Towns over 20,000 may have public transportation, but that doesn't mean it is convenient. The bus service in Burlington (about 25K) exists but it may as well not. It's very limited

[tollfree]

It makes more sense to live 15 miles away, when you could be 0.7 miles away.

[funksoulbro]

Originally Posted by capitalcityguy

You do realize that fuel is only a portion of the expense of owning a car, don't you? Depreciation, insurance, taxes, licensing, and yes, maintaince/oil changes.

That's why you buy a car that is 12 years old. The taxes and licensing are cheap. Depreciation is minimal. You can typically pay cash to buy it outright, eliminating the need for comprehensive insurance. If you're not traveling in it constantly, maintenance becomes very affordable.

There are ways to drive cheaply. I'm assuming the subject in this DMJuice story was trying to keep up with other "young professionals" who are driving new BMWs or Volkswagens to their gated communities in Ankeny. If you're a materialistic d-bag who thinks chasing narcissism defines success, you'll probably spend all kinds of money on stuff you don't need:

Breast implants for the mistress, vacation cabins in northern Minnesota, an au pair for the children your wife popped out but was too busy with her career at Aviva to care for them herself...

[funksoulbro]

Originally Posted by ElleTea

Towns over 20,000 may have public transportation, but that doesn't mean it is convenient. The bus service in Burlington (about 25K) exists but it may as well not. It's very limited

It doesn't sound like Des Moines' public transportation is real convenient either, especially if you work second shift and don't get off work until 11:00pm.