Issue #5: Ride Time!

How to Lose 3,000 Pounds and Save Money While Doing It!

By Miles B. Cooper

This is not about slimming down the body, but simplifying life and rethinking car ownership. “Zounds,” you may think, “here we go with some tree-hugger, all-cars-are-bad zealot.” Not so. When I moved to San Francisco in 2004, a condition of moving into our old (read no garage) Victorian was a leased parking space for a zippy sports car that brought me great joy. Work required occasional drives to random locations. Fast forward to 2015. Work still required occasional trips, yet I found the car sat unused most of the time.

That’s not unusual. For most of us, our cars sit unused 95% of the time. Yet after rent or a mortgage payment, car ownership and maintenance is usually the next largest household expense. This on an item that continually depreciates. Add in the time needed to maintain a car and hunt for parking and one starts to recognize the significant impact car ownership has on one’s life. At the same time, we live in a transit and resource-dense environment. This includes as-needed access to cars. Hourly car rentals like Zipcar, Getaround, Gig carshare, and Turo are immediately available. In fact, the nearest Zipcar is closer to our house than our leased parking space was. Longer-term rentals (Enterprise, Sixt, and the major agencies near Union Square) are within 20 minutes. These options provide cars on demand without the ownership cost and time.

The author with the Coopers’ family “minivan.” Photo: Erik Mathy | @erikhmathy

We sold our car in 2015 and never looked back. “But I have kids,” you say. So did we — ages 2 and 3. In 2016-17, we even managed a car-free cancer year filled with chemotherapy, radiation, and surgeries at Stanford for our now healthy 8-year-old. We leaned into transit and relied on a cargo bike for kid hauling. What I learned during this is while transit may take a little longer to get to Stanford, one can sit and work while doing it. I finished a train ride with a reduced email inbox instead of demands stacking while we drove in traffic congestion, getting frustrated.

The additional bike lanes, slow streets, and one-way Bay Wheels bikes add safer bicycle riding options. Couple that with the amazing advances in e-bike options to get around (and haul kids and groceries) and urban environments like the Bay Area, Los Angeles, Portland, Seattle, and other dense areas become open and accessible on two wheels.

Giving up a car is a huge change, and change can be scary. But for those living in transit-dense areas, now is the time to give it a try. For those willing to take the plunge, they will find life to be simpler and less expensive. The reduced carbon footprint is a bonus. Every private car gone frees up road space for the few whose lives or abilities make car ownership truly necessary.

If you’re car-free curious and have concerns that you want to talk through, we’d love to brainstorm them with you. Chances are we’ve faced the issue in the seven years we’ve gone without, and we’d enjoy sharing and learning from those exploring the car-free path.

About the author: Read more of Miles B. Cooper’s articles about bikes.