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The problem with the thought of substituting walking for driving, is the ability to do either tends to diminish along a parallel timeline.
Sad but true, for many. Still, many who have retired to walkable cities cite better health, weight loss, etc.
We gave up cars a year ago at age 61, since we don't want to drive where we retired here. Buses go by every 20 min. and drop us off at the mall. $1 each. Loaded up with groceries, we take a taxi back: $8.
But often a driving friend will take us places. I wondered if we'd miss it, as I really enjoyed driving---except in traffic. Road trips were a lot of fun. We find we don't miss it, and certainly have more $$ in retirement without auto expenses....
I'd find it hard to adjust in the U.S. without a car, though.
Yeah, my dad had to give up driving for many years when he started experiencing mini-blackouts due to heart problems. Luckily, he only hit inanimate objects, but.....
The problem with the thought of substituting walking for driving, is the ability to do either tends to diminish along a parallel timeline.
Well, not necessarily true. Some people give up driving because they don't enjoy it, don't want that responsibility anymore, are on a limited budget and don't want to pay for insurance and annual car registration and so on.
Personally, I can see myself not driving when I turn 62 as long as things are within reasonable walking range or there are at least taxis for getting to needed appointments. This works well especially in smaller towns with a central downtown area where most things tend to be all within a few short blocks.
I'm now 58 and walk about 9-10 miles a day at work. I'm on my feet and walking almost constantly for 8 hours. I think and hope I'll still be walking quite well at 62 when I retire. I'd like to quit driving by 65 if not sooner, not because I no longer can walk well physically or mentally.
A very interesting thread which I approach from a bit of a different angle: that of living a car free life at ANY age. Not just because of aging, but because it can be freeing, enjoyable, and economically advantageous to use alternative forms of transportation like bicycles, scooters, one's feet, or public transportation in some combination.
I've lived a lifestyle in an isolated rural area where car-dependence is a given and it gets old fast when the grocery is 12 miles away or the doctor's appointment is 30 miles away. Bad winters are particularly frustrating and isolating. If your car goes out you are dependent on friends or relatives as no bus is running. At least where I was.
Now in the burbs these last 5 years I live where everything, for the most part, is within a mile or two. I can walk, bicycle, or scoot to 3 groceries, a library, multiple banks and restaurants, and a mall, among other shops and parks.
As a result at 62 I've used the car less and have been realizing that I could do without one altogether. I could rent one for travel and use taxis or Uber, etc. when I need to ride. Plus delivery services are popping up for groceries if I need orders in the winter. 30 degrees is too cold, for me anyway, to ride a scooter or bike.
I like the feeling of freedom and independence when car free and it certainly is cost effective. It's no wonder that many of those way younger than us are moving away from car ownership all together.
Anyway, my ''litmus test day'' arrived today to perhaps become car free. It's a long story but our old CRV bit the dust and may be a goner. It is yet to be determined, and she will go into the shop next week, but in the meantime I will be without a car. A good time to test out whether this will be a good lifestyle shift.
I like driving but won't make a car payment anymore. So there are other ways to access the use of a car if needed. Time will tell which way this goes for me. But I have to say I am just a little excited to see how this experience unfolds.
A very interesting thread which I approach from a bit of a different angle: that of living a car free life at ANY age. Not just because of aging, but because it can be freeing, enjoyable, and economically advantageous to use alternative forms of transportation like bicycles, scooters, one's feet, or public transportation in some combination.<>
My wife refuses to pedal 7 miles to church on Sunday because she arrives sweaty and improperly dressed.
<>I like driving but won't make a car payment anymore. So there are other ways to access the use of a car if needed. Time will tell which way this goes for me. But I have to say I am just a little excited to see how this experience unfolds.
The finances are different these days. Instead of investing in a $30,000 loan for a new car, plus insurance and upkeep, with the delivery services you mention, plus Uber/Lyft, someone can get some transportation needs met for the $400/month purchase loan and $100/month insurance.
Googled, in 2014:
"In Raleigh, the base fare for Uber is $1.55 plus 20 cents per minute and $1.20 per mile.
An additional $1 "safe rides fee" is also added to the fare.
Lyft, another ride-share option, has a base charge of $1.13, a $1.10 cost per mile
and 18 cents per minute, as well as a safety fee of $1.50."
We have essentially no bus service.
So the wife's Sunday Trip would be over $100 per month; our gym visits would be $300 per month. We haven't gone to a movie or dinner or a doctor yet. We still need to car to visit the grandkids.
"Doesn't work for me"
.......................
I like the feeling of freedom and independence when car free .......................
I'm glad if being car free works for you. But it's a non-sequitur to talk about "freedom and independence" in that context. True freedom and independence is when you can decide on the spur of the moment to go anywhere you want - to a late movie, to a musuem, to the beach to enjoy the sunset - and there is no worry about transit schedules or the complication of transfers.
I, too, enjoy walking, but not in a pouring rain storm or not when it's 105 degrees outside.
I find it strange that you can say the exact opposite of what the reality is. And as a disclaimer, I am aware that there are some valid arguments for being car free, one of them being financial, and another one being for people who hate to drive anyway. But "freedom and independence" is an argument for car ownership.
With my declining eyesight, driving will not be an option before too long.
My means of transportation will be either senior services, bus, taxi, or having a friend take me places (and I would pay them to help with the cost of gas). There are also grocery stores that deliver.
The fees for these various options will be a lot less than the cost of maintaining a car.
The finances are different these days. Instead of investing in a $30,000 loan for a new car, plus insurance and upkeep, with the delivery services you mention, plus Uber/Lyft, someone can get some transportation needs met for the $400/month purchase loan and $100/month insurance.
Since when do you have to pay $30, 000 for a vehicle? Most of my neighbors drive vehicles in the $8-16k range.
And why do you use 2014 rates for Uber?
If you make the straw dog up correctly, I guess you cn make the numbers work.
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