Can You Live Without a Car?
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Photo: Code Arachnid
I’ll spare you the environmental lecture—Just imagine your life with out a car payment. Sounds pretty nice, right? Read on to see how you can make it a reality. Even better: you don’t have to wear spandex biking shorts.
Honestly assess the cost of a car.
Of course your ride really costs a lot more than the monthly payment automatically usurped from your checking account. AAA puts out a nifty little publication yearly (http://www.aaaexchange.com/Assets/Files/200948913570.DrivingCosts2009.pdf), and has been doing so since 1950, that helps you assess the true value of a car, factoring in fuel, maintenance, tires, insurance—all of those things that seem to sneak up and empty out your savings account. (The average total cost per year is around $8,000).
If you are more digital than analog, try using this calculator, too: http://www.commutesolutions.org/calc.htm
What most avid bikers and public transit commuters say, though, is that it is a quality-of-life issue more than a financial one—though the money saved doesn’t hurt. A heart-pumping bike ride or subway ride with a paper (minus the crushing rush hour commute in a dense place like New York) simply makes for a better start to the day than inhaling exhaust fumes from the car in front of you.
Another thought: if you are exercising by commuting, you could also ditch the gym membership, at least according to one study about “active commuting”. Basically the study showed that people who walk or bike to work are less likely to be obese and have healthier blood pressure. (The researchers said more study was needed in the field, and that working out on top of an active commute is even better than the commute alone).
Find a bike-friendly city.
Most of the protests to going car-free have to do with hometown: It seems to make sense to be carfree in bigger cities with the cache for bike lanes and congestion that demands public transportation. But, surprisingly, the League of American Bicyclists conducted a comprehensive study of American cities, small and large, (http://www.bikeleague.org/programs/bicyclefriendlyamerica/pdfs/bfc_master_list_web.pdf), and square-footage, sheer size, doesn’t have much to do with bikeability. The #1 bike-friendly city in America, Davis, California is just 10.5 square miles, while the #2 bike-friendly city, Portland, Oregon, is 134.3 miles. Cedar Falls, Iowa? Tulsa, Oklahoma? Probably not at the first to come to mind when it comes to living without a car, but they’ve both recently made the bike-friendly list.
Population is also not a factor. Davis had 62,593 people in the 2008 Census, while Portland had 557,706. New York City, one the League’s list but not incredibly bike friendly, clocked in at over 8 million.
Communities are also pushing hard to promote biking, so check out the tax-dollar and charitable programs in your area. In Champaign, Illinois the Bike Project (thebikeproject.org) fixes up old clunkers and sells them on the cheap. They also offer a free class to teach people how to fix their own bikes to keep them on the road. A bike sharing program has started up in D.C. Public bikes are locked up in high traffic areas around the city. Swipe your card to unlock one, cruise for as long as your like, then drop it off at any of the docking points and you will be charged by the hour.
Choose your neighborhood wisely.
Buying or renting within a few miles of work may seem far fetched to some people, especially those in sprawling Sunbelt cities like Atlanta or Houston, but new zoning laws are looking to reverse that trend, for better or worse. Tax breaks are given in Atlanta and many other cities for new developments that are “mixed use,” meaning that homes and businesses are under one roof.
Also, a study published in August called Walk the Walk (http://blog.walkscore.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/WalkingTheWalk_CEOsforCities.pdf) shows that the so-called walkability of a city increases home values. Walkability here is defined by the social and shopping destinations that you don’t need a car to get to. The study ultimately found that, “Houses with the above-average levels of walkability command a premium of about $4,000 to $34,000 over houses with just average levels of walkability in the typical metropolitan areas studied”.
Consider going half-car.
No matter how many pains you go to trying to find the right place to work and live, there are going to be things that you don’t want to lug on the bike or bus, like, say, a Christmas tree or your weekly load of groceries. Clever car sharing companies, like Zipcar, are looking to capitalize on exactly that need for carless people. (http://money.cnn.com/2009/08/26/news/companies/zipcar_car_rentals.fortune/)
The idea is elegantly simple: Become a Zipcar member. When you need a ride, use an iPhone app or computer to find that closest Zipcar to you, which you reserve online. When you approach the car, touch your membership card to the window and the doors unlock automatically. The keys are inside, as is a gas card, and you are charged one flat rate per hour, about $8, depending on the city. Park the car in your hood and the process starts over.
As of January 1, 2009, Susan Sheehan of the University of California at Berkeley found that 24 car sharing programs in the United States has 309,437 members, definitely qualifying it as a trend that extends beyond one brilliant business idea. (In Canada, 15 organizations had 46,802 members).
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61 Comments so far
leave a commentI live in Burlington, VT, which is an incredibly easy place to live with no car. Until I bought my new car a year ago, I had no car for over 3 years, and aside from slight inconveniences from time to time (if I put off laundry so long that it became cumbersome to carry to the laundromat, for instance), it was simple. It saved me money and saved the environment from my laziness. I still love my new car though! I try not to use it much, but it’s too convenient for me to be anything but glad I bought it.
One of the greatest aspects of Burlington is quick access to the mountains. That really does require a car (though friends with cars can certainly fill that need in some ways). I was living in Burlington a year ago. It’s an easy town to walk and bike in for sure, but the car was an important part of my routine. One of my favorite things about Burlington is no matter where you are with a car, you can be out of the city in 5 minutes. Rt 7 down that strip is the only annoyance.
I’m in San Francisco now without a car and miss the freedom to explore all that northern California has to offer. Biking in the city is great though.
I have been living without a car (in Providence RI) for over 3 years. I love it. I ride my bike to work daily and rent a car through Avis when we travel.
Hey, me too! been biking to work in providence without a car for 2 years now – biking is just so much more fun and the few miles a day of riding has got to be good for me. Also I’m a musician and I’ve find/built instruments and gear that I can transport on my back to gigs
If it wasn’t for the daily commute to the ‘burbs for work, I wouldn’t own a car. I lived for several years without one when I didn’t have this commute and found that renting a car when I needed it (2 weekends/month) was much cheaper and less stressful.
Fully agree with you.
I think the real question is “Can you afford to live without a NEW car?” Buy a used car, dump the car payment and keep yourself debt-free.
Very true. The car depreciates immediately upon driving off the lot. One of the worst purchases you can buy actually. The sweet spot to buying a used car is approximately 3-4 years after new. That’s when it is still in good shape, has a good life and will start to depreciate slower than those first few years.
This is perfect! I just sold my car last week and could not be happier. I have been tossing the idea around for a while, but finally got up the nerve to sell it. Not only will I save on monthly cost and maintenance (and parking tickets!), but I got enough money to pay off my credit cards (and then some.)
I live in Chicago and drove the car twice a month (to move it for street cleaning.) I would occasionally drive it to Michigan to see family though. That was the only real use for the car.
I take the bus/train to work daily. If I need a car locally I can use Zip car. If I want to go see family in Michigan I can rent a car or take Amtrak. No car for me, now I credit debt free!
Hey Matt, I’ve been thinking of doing just that. My car lives in the parking lot under my building and I literally forget I have a car! I drive it *maybe* twice a month, like you used to do. Can you contact me? I’d love to hear how you went about selling your car. Please email me here: rickrivera (at) me (dot) com. Thanks! Rick
I’m turning 30 in October, and I’ve never owned a car…ever. So yes, it is possible.
Wow no way dude. I like drive 60 miles (one way) to skate every weekend, no other way to get tehre but drive!
Jess
http://www.web-privacy.de.tc
Thanks for this great post. I’ve been living without a car for about fifteen years now, and am so happy I made the switch. I find that shopping trips for big items, etc., can be done together with friends who have cars. Unfortunately, the city I live in now doesn’t have great public transportation, but in most large cities, it’s actually a much more stress-free way to live.
Or just relocate to Europe. I’m living in El Paso, TX after having lived in Latvia and Sweden. My first experience was trying to walk to 6km distant Wal Mart and realising that there are no f..ing sidewalks. There are no bike paths either. Or public transportation for that matter. Without a car, you are nothing in the States.
I used to live in El Paso, and was able to get out of there last November. Please don’t compare all of the United States to that one city, as that is not the best standard for comparison….
There’s TONS of posts like these going around in the personal finance blogosphere. For some people, this is simply out of the question. Maybe for some college kid, or someone who works a mile or two from their house but has no kids.
I just don’t think this is practical. For most Americans this simply wouldn’t work.
David,
I know that it doesn’t seem likely, but you would be surprised how “easy” taking a bus or biking part way reallly is!
I have been leaving my car at home and getting around via bus and bike (I live in Denver) and have been early to most of my appointments!
It’s nice to have a car for getting up to the mountains or running to the home improvement store but I can defintely get around without it.
Don’t forget, it’s way cheaper (sometimes even free) for kids to ride the bus!!
having gone for 26 years without a license to drive, i can safely say that no matter where you are, it is very easy to live without a car. I am located within a 10 min walk from the grocery store, pharmacy (3 to be precise), as well as several other stores…if i need to go to a store further away i simply wait till one of my friends goes then i carpool. all in all it works for me.
I’m all for ride-sharing, carpooling and mass transit (I often bike or bus most places). But there needs to be realistic assessment of the diversity that exists in the landscapes and situations of our world. You can safely say that no matter where you are it’s very easy to live without a car? That’s an amazingly gross exaggeration given all the variables in health, location, occupation and family situation (etc). It may be that wherever *you* are it’s more possible, but you might have to learn how to live off the land.
We had a friend like Shelley. She liked to brag about how she didn’t need a car either. She liked to go out dancing on the weekends, at venues where the bus service was inconvenient or nonexistent. What that meant was that she was cadging rides from all of her friends, most of them driving at least 5-10 miles out of their way. I can’t remember her ever offering to pay for gas, or buying someone a drink or anything else in recompense for their largess.
Sure, not having a car can work most of the time for someone who lives close to work, or on a bus line that connects to work, and has decent shopping close by. But it takes making life choices that not everyone wants to make.
first let me state that I completely understand that you basically just can’t live without a car in some cities…
but for those who could:
i’ve been living without a car for 5 years (in Mumbai, Paris and Montreal) and it feels great. less stress, no oil changes, no car issues, no traffic jams, plus i saved a bunch of money.
i miss driving from time to time but, hey, its worth it. maybe you’ll wait for the bus in winter. maybe you’ll have to plan your day a bit in advance, but i assure you you’ll win overall in your quality of life.
Plus, at 8000$/year (CR here in Canada says 7000 i think) minus the cost for a year of public transport, the difference covers quite a lot of taxi rides and rental cars.
Just do it!
I find your argument weak and flawed in so many ways. You are looking at small MINORITY of people in your article. Those who either are healthy enough, young to middle aged, or don’t have other priorities besides work. Think of those with small children who need to get them to school or daycare before work, and pick them up after work. Is a bicycle a good idea? Or a ride share program? The issue of programs like a RideShare are the number of available vehicles against the number who want the vehicles. Attempt to find one on a Friday evening, or a weekend when they are really necessary. Good Luck.
I would say your article, while interesting caters to a very small cross section of our communities.
Good luck with that.
I feel that ethanol would be a great alternative to a fuel source but most of the complaints is that it is to hard to transport. Then why sell a car that is ethanol powered , I think more smart cars and fuel cell cars should be sold people are not buying enough hybrids they were very popular at first now even less and less are being bought each year. If the government would up what o how much of a tax break they can get each year by purchasing a hybrid more people would purchase them.
MAN sometimes you people drive me nuts. FIRST there is nothing wrong with taking advantage of public transport if its available. BUT THIS PART drives me nuts.
Find a bike-friendly city.
What planet are you from? so you think I should SELL my house MOVE and go BUY another house to save a pittance on a car?
I spend $3500 a year in gasoline (my commute is 110 miles round trip) $400 a year on insurance for TWO cars. Couple hundred a year on maintenance (I do most of the work myself) I have 490,000 miles on my 88 Cherokee still runs just fine almost zero maintenance.
I listed my numbers for a reason. I spend a LOT of money on gasoline.
Buying a house entails current interest rates of 138% (thats what a 6.7apr is)
so IF I managed to say find a $100,000 home in a bike friendly city. I would have to pay $138,000 in interest.
now take my early vehicle expenses (lets figure I need another car every 10 years so add $2000 every decade)
so in 10 YEARS I spend roughly $42,000 on my car (everything gas maintenance insurance registration inspection etc..)
how about 30 years. Thats $126,000 on the CAR
so in 30 years I STILL HAVE NOT CAUGHT UP WITH THE $138,000 you think I should spend to move to a bike friendly city.
Do you guys even THINK about the OPPOSITE side of what your proposing.
your saying save money save money and then IGNORING the money you have to SPEND to try and SAVE that money and ignoring that in 30 years YOU WILL STILL SPEND MORE MONEY with YOUR plan than just using your damned car.
NOW there is another reason I mentioned my expenses. I AM AN EXCEPTION I spend a LOT of money in gasoline.
The average american spend 1/3 that. which means it would take over FIFTY YEARS for them to “break even” with your plan maybe over SIXTY years is LONGER than many would be expected to be alive.
point is your plan requires people to spend MORE MONEY MOVING than their car will cost them FOR THE REST OF THEIR ENTIRE LIFE.
NOW there is an exception. if your an apartment renter or other sort of RENTER and can find similar RENT in the new city. OK you will save money.
I am not a renter.
Plus in the next 10 years I WILL have an electric car. when that happens my CAR expenses drop to $500 (insurance registration and inspection NO FUEL) a year and my maintenance expenses drop to near zero and my 10 year car expense drops to ZERO. (its the last car I will buy in my life span) though I would have to buy a new battery for $4500 every 25-30 years. unless super caps come out them the power pack might last longer than I will.
You definitely make some good points. However, I don’t think I’d be spending $100k more to live in a bike friendly city. But maybe I’m wrong.
I hope most of you already know. But for the people who dont, try zipcar.com. I am not a marketing guy for zipcar, I love their service. Hope you all do too.
@Chris Taylor: One quick question – you mention you are not a renter. Do you LIVE WITH YOUR PARENTS? Or do you have EQUITY in a HOME? I think you mean to talk about the DIFFERENCE IN HOUSING PRICES BETWEEN YOUR CURRENT HOMETOWN AND A POTENTIAL NEW ONE, and probably the pain in the butt of selling and buying houses, too. Just saying. Of course, if you’re upside down in your mortgage, I apologize, you’ve got enough problems without having faulty logic pointed out on the internet.
@John Smith: Please have a beer and lighten up. Maybe make it two.
I believe this article is a suggestion, not a command. The first segment is titled “Honestly assess the cost of a car.” For Chris, the test fails here. Lumped into that first segment is the quality-of-life argument. For John, the test fails here. No, it’s not right for everyone, but it will be for some people. Try to understand the point of the piece before you slam it as worthless.
I live in Pasadena, CA, having moved here from the DC area where my boyfriend and I did not have cars, and used the train and metro (he in Baltimore and I in VA). Now married, we decided to see how long we could live without a car in SoCal. 2 years and 2 months. We had to buy a car because my husband’s work requires it. For 8 months he commuted by bus, but then he had to go between hospitals not connected by bus. The peer pressure on him was horrendous!! Everyone thought he was crazy for not driving. Somehow in DC no one ever thought that. I continue to use the bus, but mostly walk. EVERYWHERE. I do all our grocery shopping on foot, walking a mile or more home from grocery stores (Trader Joe’s, mostly) and the farmers’ market, is my aerobic and weights workout. There are 3 bus lines that go all the way to Hollywood, should I want. I’ve taken the train and bus to Santa Monica and Venice. It takes a while because it is far. I seldom use the car unless I have a special function to attend in another city. I love living car-free.
I lived without a car for 3 years when I lived in Boston. Now that I live in the Burbs I live with 1/2 a car, my husband and I share.
I have to say it was nice living no car.
-No shoveling off the snow
-No worrying about it breaking down
-No oil changes etc.
-No TRAFFIC (when using the underground T)
I say if you can try it!
I was very close to doing the no car thing, as I am moving to a new apartment just a few miles from work. The only thing that stopped me was that the road where I work at is REALLY not bike friendly. The traffic usually goes about 70mph through here, and there’s barely any shoulder to of, with a large hill thrown in for good measure
25 years old, NYC never owned a car.
To John Smith: You really need to do some research if you think childless people constitute a “very small minority.” You’re right, if you have several young kids and live in a suburban area, a car is probably your only realistic option.
But there are LOTS of people who don’t have children, or don’t have children who require constant shuttling to appointments. If you live in a walkable, safe neighborhood like mine in DC, your child can WALK to and from school and other various appointments. You can walk with them if you don’t want them walking alone, but the point is you’re not shoving them in a car or riding around in a ridiculous tandem bicycle.
I get that you probably don’t live in this kind of neighborhood, or have the kind of lifestyle that permits going car-free. But many Americans do, or want to, and this article is written for those people.
For households with several young kids in a detached single family home in the suburbs, keep driving. The rest of us will just have to make up for your disproportionate use of our resources by living more sustainably.
I would love to not have a car, or to share one with my husband. They can be such a hassle! My car has needed so much work this year. However, having two small children it would be near impossible. I can’t imagine taking the bus with them to go grocery shopping or to the doctor. It would be nice though, if we had better public transportation like Europe. Where I live you would have to drive about 15 minutes to the nearest bus stop.
In Philadelphia, there’s also the Philly car share, although I understand that its future is in jeopardy. I’ve recently started taking the train when I have to go into the city (I live just outside), and although I’ve always been one of those people who have been wedded to my car, I have to admit that the train is much better for getting to the city from here. No traffic, and it actually takes less time because of traffic & parking.
if only SD had a better public transportation system!
I used to live in SD and I know I’ll be car free if I ever go back. Granted, I’m a bit of a cycling nut so I don’t even mind the 15 mile ride from my parents house into town. I guess my point is, that cycling is an option most people don’t consider simply because it’s “too hard”. Go and give it a try. Start by replacing short trips of less than 2 miles, and you might get hooked.
I sometimes bike, but would bike more with a motorized bike, also would take a bus too bad the busses don’t go where my job is.
not having a car will fuck you over monetary wise. Cars open up more jobs that usually pay a lot more than anything within biking distance of the suburbs
any high paying jobs on bus routes are usually shitty work because all the good jobs that are based around bus hours and are in walking distance of bus routes were taken a long time ago by your older bus riding companions
As a military brat who spent many years in different places…..
Europe seems to make it very easy to live car free. I remember living in Scotland we could catch a bus even though our home was many miles from the nearest town.
You could bike to the bus stop, take the bus to the train stop then go practically anywhere! The US on the other hand was designed for everyone to have a car.
The rumors and conspiracy theorists seem to follow the same general line.
As this country started developing a robust public transportation system, the large oil conglomerates and US car manufactures bought controlling stock in these systems then installed CEO’s who ran them into the ground. My grandmother (90) has even regaled me with tales from her childhood about the idiot who ruined the public trolley and bus line in her town. Makes you wonder. I live in a very rural area with nearly zero public transportation so a car is a necessary. When I lived in DC however I always wondered why people who lived downtown had a car, just no reason for and a pain to boot with no parking and high insurance rates.
I live in SoCal. With a more developed public transportation system, I could live without a car (happily). Work, shopping, and home are just too far removed to do that plausibly now.
i know i won’t die without my car but i enjoy it and it’s well within the affordable range for me so it makes sense to have one.
Just leaving a comment from the other side of the Atlantic (I live in Barcelona, Spain, southern Europe): to live without a car in my city is perfectly possible. I do it. I go to work every day by train and it costs me just 7.40 euros a week (around 10 dollars). Any other trip I can do is by bus, subway or taxi. Our city has public bicycles, but I don’t use them. Most cities in Europe are not just good for a car-free style, they are bad for car owners: taxes, parking costs (pretty high), narrow streets, stress… Cars are good for your privacy and your ego, but bad for anything else!
True that some of us really cannot get by without a car, but for those of us who live in areas with great public transportation I recommend that you get rid of your car. I used to drive about 30K miles a year in my 98 subaru, and sold it when I moved to Jersey City. I havent missed it. When I need a car I rent it. If I go shopping and I have heavy stuff (including bags of compost) I call a cab. When you rent cars you have no hassles with any of the following: car payments, ridiculous insurance rates, car registration fees or expired tags, unplanned expensive repairs, new tires, vandalism, parking, or even ever having to refill the windshield wiper fluid.
I live without a car… life is good.
I don’t have a car. I using my bike everyday. I want buy a car but only when i have enough money
Definitely, if you live in a big city. However, having an old second hand car doesn’t cost that much at all. My insurance is only $500/yr, and there are no car payments on my beater.
Having a car is liberating, but so is taking public transportion.
My husband and I lived just outside Boston for a little over two years with no car. If we’d stayed there, we probably never would have gotten one. Gas prices, parking ($100 minimum/month), and insurance never would have made it worth it.
We’ve moved about 25 minutes outside of the city now and are finally going to end up buying a car for weekend travel and shopping (no zipcars near us anymore, sob), but still can manage a walk to the commuter rail from our house and then the train ride into the city for work.
Zipcar was amazing for the 2 years that we used it and I can’t recommend the service more
I wish they were in Framingham so we could continue to be car-free.
In Los Angeles its impossible!
There are lots of options in between. You don’t have to either buy a used car or not have a car in order to not have a car payment. You could just pay off your car and then not get another one. I bought a nearly-new car 10 years ago. It was technically used but had only 1600 miles; it was a return, so I got a great deal. The car has been paid off for years, and I intend to drive it until it drops. I’ve also been able to find jobs close enough to my home to ride my bike to work. I drive to work only when I have to be somewhere after work that’s too far to ride.
Man, I don’t know how you guys do it…
I used to live in Portland, which has what is considered a good public transportation system.
As an experiment one time when I was going out of town I decided to use the public transport to get across town to the airport and then home on the way back.
Taking a combination of the light rail, and the various buses I needed to get there it took 2.5 hours for a trip that I could make in 20 minutes if I drove myself. And dealing with luggage on the train/buses made it so miserable that I ended up paying for a taxi once I got back in rather than repeat the experience on the trip home.
I suspect most of you must stay within a very small number of miles the large majority of time, because if you are traveling any significant distance the extra time spent waiting for buses and the like is a killer, at least from my perspective.
I’ll admit in Portland it appear to be possible, if you are willing to donate a large percentage of your free time to public transportation to get by without a car, but every where else I have lived (admittedly all outside the big cities in the east) it’s not even really possible, unless you are counting mooching off someone else’s car, which isn’t really living without a car.
20 minutes by car? Unless that was entirely highway speeds, that’s only half an hour or so by bike. I’ve always found public transportation to be really hit or miss because of the spoke and hub style routes they often run. It makes a short trip way longer, and you’ll probably transfer several times on the way. That’s the main reason I bike everywhere.
Like Portland, it is very much possible to live without car in Seattle. Also, zipcar can be used as a substitute of car.
The year I lived without a car was fantastic, and I was probably in the best shape I’ve ever been in biking everywhere I needed to go.
Fortunately I was living less than a mile from my (then) job. Now it’s closer to 14 miles, and there’s no public transportation.
If I could, I would do it again in a heartbeat.
This is a great post! I live in San Francisco, which is — despite a high walkscore rating — is not the easiest city to go carless, due to a slow public transit system (mainly buses) and very steep hills. Despite living at the top of a steep hill (250ft above the “city level”) and easy parking on my block, I’ve never purchased a car.
Like you said, the environmental benefits are great, but I also do it because of the economic and health benefits. There are so many costs to owning a car. Fuel, insurance, cost of the car itself, registration, inevitable parking tickets. I borrow cars on occasion, and recently the car I was borrowing was broken in to. Just a broken small corner window was the only damage. It was $250 in repair costs!
So instead of spending thousands of dollars each year on a car, I spend $250 on a train pass to take me to/from work, and probably $150 a year on the bus. When I need to, I find a car to borrow (or use zipcar) and pay the real cost for that.
I might get around slower and have less flexibility, but I’d much rather save that money than see it go toward keeping up a car. And I’m much healthier for it, especially walking up that hill. I easily stay skinny while eating incredibly healthy or going to the gym regularly.
I encourage everyone else to try it, if you live in an area that makes it possible!
Just to add, I also find myself more stressed when I do have a car. I worry about getting a ticket, and I worry about break ins. I find I’m much happier when I don’t have any expensive machine left out on the street to worry about.
I bought my compact car new fifteen years ago, and paid it off in three. The last 12 years of driving have been without a car payment. Given that it’s worth very little, car insurance is less than $50/month (I only pay for liability, not collision or comprehensive coverage). Reducing the cost of a car can be done without ditching the car entirely.
That being said, I liked it when I worked 5 miles from home and could bike there and back on fair weather days. With a longer commute, that’s currently not happening.
No doubt a car cost a lot of money but who wants to go through life without a car?
No way. With no car, I have two options: take 3 buses to get to work or swim across the bay. I think I’d swim, healthier.
I live in Dallas, TX. Not having a car in TX is just not an option. The public transportation here consists of mainly buses and one rail system which connects some of the suburbs to downtown Dallas. If you work anywhere other than downtown, you have to own a car. Even to get to the rail station stops you need a car. Everything in TX is spread out. Even a walk to the grocery store is at least a couple of miles away. Good luck going grocery shopping with a bicycle. I personally prefer leasing a car instead of purchasing. This way you have low monthly payments and the car is under warranty for the duration of the lease. Also moving to a bike friendly city is not an option for most people who have families. As some posts mentioned, it will most likely cost you more to move in the long run than staying and owning a car.
Dallas is not the most car-free-living friendly city, I will admit. However, its frustrating and disappointing to see so many people with this attitude towards car ownership. Also, a couple miles to the grocery store is too far? By bike? Or was your concern how much you could carry with a bike? With my commuter I can carry nearly anything I can imagine short of furniture. (just for reference, I could easily carry 6 gallons of milk between two panniers and my trunk bag. Not that I’d ever need to.) And if I ever find something I can’t carry on my bike, that’s what trailers are for. The world would be a better place if people would stop reciting the reasons why it won’t work, and at least give it a try.
Yes you can and yes I do live without a car.