Moving from 2 cars to 1 - anyone got insights?

angelil

rosyq wrote: »

I had to butt in and reply to that - of course people enjoy using public transport, I do!
I always choose the train over the car to visit mum 90 miles away if I can - I can read and have a sneaky coffee instead of sitting on the M25 getting more & more stressed.
I have a car now as a luxury I can afford, but only use it for giving lifts really and to get to the vet.
When I first got divorced I couldn't afford a car so I did without for a few years, walked to work, kids got buses to school, it was fine.

I meant the use of public transport on a daily basis...i.e. not just an occasional 90-mile trip.

If you had to use it every day for a 2.5-3hr round trip commute as I do, then believe me - you would get fed up with it VERY fast.

mishmogs

When I was made redundant, I lost my company car but managed without a second car. It took careful planning when I got another job which involved a lot of driving, I took DH to work and carried on to visit clients and picked him up at the end of the day. It made the day 2 hours longer but I didn't want to invest in another car especially as my then new employer was having 'financial difficulties' and eventually went under.

Roll forward another year and I went back to college using public transport and it was hell, fighting on the bus, bullying of a passenger and the driver did nothing. I decided life was too short to listen to this and bought a car. I live 20 miles from a shopping centre/market town and wouldn't go back to local public transport specially at the price I would have to pay :eek:

So my advice is the same as another posters, try without for a month and see how you go on. Apart fro fuel, mine costs me less than £500 per year to run and thats factoring in a basic service and a tyre or two. (its not a speedy car by any means)!.

bride2be2012

We did this a few months back. At first I hated it, as DH works shifts and on occasion if I needed the car for a day, I would have to drop him off at work anytime between 3am and 6am, and pick him up late evening. Now I've got used to it, and try to schedule things when I need the car on his day off or on a better shift time. Public transport isn't an option for DH due to his shifts and work location.

I'm also lucky in that we have a fairly good public transport system (3-4 buses an hour daytime) into town. shop, butchers, doc, health centre, library, vets, family pub/restaurant type place, take aways - all within a ten minute walk. Currently on maternity leave with our first so no need to worry about school run yet, but we are again within walking distance of 2 parent groups, and if we stay in the area long term, both primary and secondary schools are within walking distance, all the kids round here cycle or walk to school.

The only way I can see us getting another second car anytime soon is when I go back to work, and it'll very much depend on hours/pay/location of what I end up doing.

If you can make it work for you very much depends on where you live and work, and what you do as a family, but as you've said you live in the city with good transport links I can't see it being an issue, its not for us anyway. And only having the running costs of one car, especially as I'm on smp just now, is a big help!

FatVonD

I think the idea of forgetting you have it for a month is a good one.

Personally I should easily be able to cope with getting rid of my car, I live near a train station and commute for work so have a travelcard anyway so any extra travel would cost me nothing. (I also live on a bus route though not a good one.)

The reality is that, even though I rarely use my car, I'd feel trapped in the house without it. Our other vehicle is DH's cab so it IS his work (rather than him just using it to get to work) and I'd hate to be reliant on him for lifts all the time and have to put up with him sulking if he didn't feel like driving!

That said, my car at the moment is bought and paid for. If I had to replace it i might think again.

pukkamum

We have gone down to one car and although I do miss the convenience of it I don't miss the extra bills.
It has meant I now have an hour round trip walk to school twice a day, but I see this as being very good for my waistline.
We're lucky enough to live near very good bus routes and I can get to most places easily enough on the bus.
The worst part of it is that we sold my little car (the first car that was solely mine) to the woman across the road and it still makes me sad seeing it.
Other than that it doesn't bother me at all.
I do though treat us to to a taxi to school when the weather is very bad, but very rarely.

tooldle

We have done this, but took it a step further in that we got rid of both cars, leaving us with only a motorhome. Aside from holidays, the motorhome is used occassionally for a supermarket shop (5 times a year maybe). It just isn't practical to drive around town, being fairly large.
You do adapt, quite quickly to doing things on foot and by public transport. Some public transport can be very cheap.
In the past six years, we have had to hire a car only once, for a family bereavement.
The savings are enormous.

Auntie-Dolly

And don't forget you can get a taxi now & then - public transport isn't the only option.

joolsybools

And a good old bicycle

neverdespairgirl

angelil wrote: »

You cannot imagine that anyone ENJOYS using public transport though...sometimes needs must! Believe me, if I could drive to work I would...but as it would take just as long and be far more expensive, it just isn't realistic.

Lots of people do. It's usually faster, more reliable and more comfortable, at least for inter-city journeys. For journeys within cities, such as London, it's also much cheaper, far more convenient, and much less stressful than driving.

We have one car, and have never had more than one. We see driving as the last resort, after, in roughly this order, walking, cycling, bus, tube, train.

Treevo

Do your savings take into account the cost of public transport and taxis? As well as the increased fuel you'll use on your other car. Have you also considered your time? Public transport can take a lot longer than driving yourself - you lose a lot more than just a car if you do start to share one.