What are some cities that "you need a car to live in" which could actually be lived in theroretically without a car (apartments, transfer)

[MichaelOrear]

Hello,

I know that there are many places in the US where you need a car. However, they come down to two types of places:

1. Places such as a rural small town in North Dakota spread twenty miles out where there is literally no bus access.

2. Places like Los Angeles, where compared to NYC and London, the public transit is or was BAD, but it it THERORETICALLY POSSIBLE to live without a car, if say:

1. The transit system keeps improving

2. You are organized enough to plan and schedule when you will be doing any shopping or appointments in a certain area, so you dont waste the wait and ride time that a bus system that is slow and weak BUT DOES EXIST PROVIDES.

3. You are willing to wait 15 minutes for a bus and ride a bus one hour each way.

4. You don't mind the social status of being a person who rides the bus.

5. There are actually a few good express bus routes.

6. You have the analytical skills to engage in complex trip planning (use shedule apps, transfer multiple times between routes or systems).


So, of the cities in the US where you need a car,

Which ones:

IS it difficult but theroretically possible to get by without a car

and

Which ones

Is it physically impossible to be car-less

Thanks

[KodeBlue]

I'd assume that you can live without a car in any major city.

[Drewcifer]

I lived without a car for years in both Minneapolis and St Paul. Much of it before the LRT was built or when there was only one line that was nowhere near where I lived. If a city has a good bus system it is do-able. The only issue with buses is that urbanism perfectionists look down on them, but if they get you where you are going that is what is important.

I wouldn't want to live without a car in a city where the bus system was significantly worse than Minneapolis'.

[bachslunch]

Originally Posted by KodeBlue

I assume that you can live without a car in any major city.

Agreed. If there's some kind of public transportation available or you happen to be in a good central location with shops and eateries downtown, you can likely get by without a car. Especially nowadays when you can order things you can't get to via Amazon or a similar company and live someplace with a company that will deliver groceries like Peapod. And also especially if you're in a place with minimal or no snow issues; heavy snow and ice can limit mobility in winter, rendering normally usable sidewalks a problem.

[KayneMo]

I have a family member who lives in Oklahoma City and was without a vehicle for several weeks. He did quite well with getting around to work and shopping using the bus system. He now uses the bus occasionally even while having a vehicle.

[mhays25]

Count Seattle among those where new apartments typically have a lot more units than parking spaces.

[Ivory Lee Spurlock]

A person can get by in Austin without a car pretty easy, if they live and work a short distance from a bus stop. I went without a vehicle for a couple of years back in the 90's. I was living in an apt complex on Wm Cannon and South 1st. It was a very convenient location for me. I could not have asked for a better location. At that intersection was an HEB and a Blockbusters, several restaraunts, a couple of convenience stores, a haircutting place. About everything I needed was less than a 5 minute walk. The #10 South 1st bus had a stop right in front of the apt complex, it would come by about every 20 to 30 minutes or so and it would get me to 6th and Brazos in about 20 minutes. The #33 Wm Cannon bus to Oak Hill would run about twice an hour and it would get me to my job in Oak Hill in about 20 minutes.

Of course the busses stopped running around midnight or 1am back then, so if I was gonna be out late, I'd have to get a cab home. But, if a person can find a covenient location to live, and live and work near a bus stop, and has some patience and plans it out and times his or her trips wisely, it's quite possible to live in Austin without a car and without being stressed out because of it.

I would imagine it's easier now to live in Austin without a car than it was in the 90's, but in all honestly, it's a whole lot more convenient when you do have a car to get around in. There ain't nothing like being able to come and go as you please and all in the luxury of the privacy of your own vehicle where you are free to turn on whatever radio station you want and turn the volume up as loud as you want and not have to worry about somebody yelling at you to turn it down.

[pikabike]

You forgot #7:

You feel comfortable bumming rides from friends who own cars.

Because public transit does not go everywhere you might want to go.

[Soonhun]

Originally Posted by pikabike

You forgot #7:

You feel comfortable bumming rides from friends who own cars.

Because public transit does not go everywhere you might want to go.

You could not go to those areas. Or use Uber/Lyft/traditional taxis. Or give friends or family a reasonable or generous reimbursement.

[CAjerseychick]

Have a friend in the outskirts, one town over from Portland who has never driven, she takes the bus or subway/ municipal train and always has her whole life- she is in her 30s....