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Yes. Thanks.
I remember that place, and even went shopping below it.
I agree about your description, including the convenience of it.
The problem of several other locations (Brio?) is the lack of convenient grocery shopping.
But getting out to the surrounding areas (for a social meeting) would be a real challenge, given the rudimentary bus system.
I think a few people are doing it (carfree living) already.
When we were there two years ago, we met a wheelchair-bound photographer who seemed to be functioning okay
That does not tell me anything. I bet you could find folks in most cities Greenville's size who are living without a car, some people also live off the land. But, in general, no. Greenville is very car dependent. Main st Greenville in no way represents how 99.999999% of people live here, it is the most suburban oriented city in SC. Simpsonville, Mauldin, Greer, Travelers Rest, Hwy 153, etc......that is where most folks live and where the growth of the area lies. Transit here is terrible, I don't know if Greenllink has more than 10 buses and politically, the will is not thre for transit funding. When you look at downtown as a whole, it is still a small downtown with a small job base, nothing wrong with that, it is just a fact. As such, it does not lend itself to a wide ranging audience of potential employees.
So, you are correct in that there are some outliers ( there are statistical outliers for any sample size) but, if the nature of your question is can the average person move to Greenville and live without a car, no. In SC, Charleston and Columbia are more likely as is Charlotte. THere is nothing wrong with how people live here, it is the nature of a low density southern city. If you want to live without a car in the south, Atlanta and Charlotte are the most likely cities and even that would ce a challenge.
...Greenville is very car dependent. Main st Greenville in no way represents how 99.999999% of people live here, it is the most suburban oriented city in SC. Simpsonville, Mauldin, Greer, Travelers Rest, Hwy 153, etc......that is where most folks live and where the growth of the area lies.
Transit here is terrible, I don't know if Greenllink has more than 10 buses and politically, the will is not thre for transit funding. When you look at downtown as a whole, it is still a small downtown with a small job base, nothing wrong with that, it is just a fact. As such, it does not lend itself to a wide ranging audience of potential employees.
. . .
If you want to live without a car in the south, Atlanta and Charlotte are the most likely cities and even that would ce a challenge.
I think you percentage is wrong (obviously it must be a little higher than that!).
I don't care so much if Carfree living is only possible in small pockets - I want to find those pockets.
I am not going to live in a randomly chosen place, but instead one carefully selected for the quality of its carfree living.
I am also looking at Charlotte and Asheville, but am not keen on Atlanta - which sprawls too much for my taste.
I think you percentage is wrong (obviously it must be a little higher than that!).
I don't care so much if Carfree living is only possible in small pockets - I want to find those pockets.
I am not going to live in a randomly chosen place, but instead one carefully selected for the quality of its carfree living.
I am also looking at Charlotte and Asheville, but am not keen on Atlanta - which sprawls too much for my taste.
No, my percentage is about right. Anyway, like I said, if one tries hard enough, you can live anywhere without a car. But, your question is a little broad. Can you live without a car, yes, you can live without a car in the woods. But, unless you are a statistical error at 6 standard deviations, he answer is no.
How do you define quality? If I were coming from out of state, in that list Greenville would be 2nd to Charlotte. And, Asheville would give Greenville a run because of the location.
No, my percentage is about right. Anyway, like I said, if one tries hard enough, you can live anywhere without a car. But, your question is a little broad. Can you live without a car, yes, you can live without a car in the woods. But, unless you are a statistical error at 6 standard deviations, he answer is no.
How do you define quality? If I were coming from out of state, in that list Greenville would be 2nd to Charlotte. And, Asheville would give Greenville a run because of the location.
I plan to visit all three.
I saw GRV two years ago, but thought the buses were inadequate.
I was hoping they had improved the bus service
Bus service is on a slowly improving track, but the hourly schedule and coverage hasn't changed. The equipment and service is being optimized to improve on-time performance and rider experience. Therefore it won't fit as a general transportation solution at the moment without heavily supplementing it with alternative transportation such as bike, car sharing, cab, etc.
I think a few people are doing it (carfree living) already.
When we were there two years ago, we met a wheelchair-bound photographer who seemed to be functioning okay
Nope sorry. Please don't go spewing inaccuracies about things you know nothing about. That "wheelchair bound photographer" isn't carfee. He is a very kind guy who functions just fine with a modified car.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Vhammond
What are you looking for in a city?
I have asked him this NUMEROUS times as he seems to be all over the place in where hes looking. Aside from carfree!!!111!!11 he hasn't said anything else. So I gave up.
Nope sorry. Please don't go spewing inaccuracies about things you know nothing about. That "wheelchair bound photographer" isn't carfee. He is a very kind guy who functions just fine with a modified car.
I have asked him this NUMEROUS times as he seems to be all over the place in where hes looking. Aside from carfree!!!111!!11 he hasn't said anything else. So I gave up.
Yes. He may have a car.
But once he leaves it, he has many places to go (carfree), in a small area downtown he frequents.
At least that was the impression I had the day we spoke to him. If you know him better, then you may be able to tell me whether I was mistaken or not.
I do think he would have found another place to live, if GRV were less walkable. Why not ask him?
I've said this before in here and I'll summarize and say it again:
Greenville CAN be somewhat walkable if you have the perfect mix of circumstances. One of the biggest is where you work. If you work directly downtown, don't work/are retired, or you can work from home then you can make it work by picking a place to live downtown. However, those caveats only represent a small portion of the people living in Greenville. With the way this city was built and the current infrastructure, it is completely unrealistic for a large portion of the community to be able to live a walkable life here. It IS possible if you have the perfect storm of circumstances (which can be said in almost any city) but it is not common or possible for everyone here.
I say this as someone who love walkable cities and loves using bikes and public transit. I've said before that I prefer going on vacation and visiting cities where I never have to drive a car myself and instead can use taxis, buses, trains, subways, etc. So, I fully support that style of life, but I also recognize that Greenville is not set up very well for that right now. It may be able to happen eventually here, but it will require massive infrastructure changes and large sums of money and quite a long time to make it all happen.
In summary: If you can work from home, can work directly in downtown, or don't work, you can live in downtown and have a fairly walkable life. If you don't meet that narrow criteria you will find it difficult to live a fulfilling, car-free life here. We limit our driving but still could not live the same life we do without a car here.
To summarize Jamiecta's post even further, the simple answer to the question that started this entire discussion is "YES, IT IS POSSIBLE to live without a car in Greenville."
The only relevant issue worthy of discussion at this point is whether or not Greenville is a city in which Geologic would be able to reside happily. This may be determined by addressing several key factors that would likely affect his/her life as a full-time resident and pedestrian in Greenville.
Recreation & Entertainment (parks, trails, theaters, concert venues, etc.)
Special needs, if any (food/drink, medicine, healthcare, office supplies, social interaction, etc.)
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