Your partner doesn't drive, does it bother you?

Buzzybee90

cloudy-day wrote: »

Wonderful new invention called trains.

Have you ever heard of coaches?

Would love to see your car drive you to the US!!

There's a whole new World out there drivers.....let the non-drivers show you the way. :beer:

Trains and coaches only go so far....

How on earth do you get to the middle of the countryside without a car? Come on.

duchy

Brighton_belle wrote: »

Interestingly, I have just totted up costs of other forms of transport to ailing elderly parents with increasing care needs, each week for a year and sadly it's proving to be more expensive than owning a 2nd car would.

One size will rarely fit all
For some a car (or second car) will be more economical-for others public transport will be a far cheaper option.

We were looking at property recently and it's likely to be our final home move so one of the considerations was access to facilities if we last long enough that we can't drive or manage public transport.

Personally I never understand families who choose to move somewhere where their teenage in a few years children can't use public transport-It does nothing to promote life skills for the kids .....and becomes a right pain when they are old enough to have a social life in the evenings and always need taking and picking up.

balletshoes

Buzzybee90 wrote: »

Trains and coaches only go so far....

How on earth do you get to the middle of the countryside without a car? Come on.

I don't think anyone is saying that you can get to everywhere in the UK without a car. But I would say, you can get to the majority of places in the UK without one. And even then, its not a necessity to know how to drive or own a car to get to places where there is absolutely no public transport, however sporadic. There are taxis.

I grew up on a farm, it was 3 miles to the nearest small town but a bus route was less than a mile away - didn't take long to walk to the bus stop.

Georgiegirl256

Buzzybee90 wrote: »

Trains and coaches only go so far....

How on earth do you get to the middle of the countryside without a car? Come on.

What's with the attitude? :huh:

But in answer to your question, you either cycle or you walk. A lot of rural places have community buses also.

Buzzybee90

Georgiegirl256 wrote: »

What's with the attitude? :huh:

But in answer to your question, you either cycle or you walk. A lot of rural places have community buses also.

My response was much less sarcastic than the original post.

barbarawright

balletshoes wrote: »

I don't think anyone is saying that you can get to everywhere in the UK without a car. But I would say, you can get to the majority of places in the UK without one. And even then, its not a necessity to know how to drive or own a car to get to places where there is absolutely no public transport, however sporadic. There are taxis.

I grew up on a farm, it was 3 miles to the nearest small town but a bus route was less than a mile away - didn't take long to walk to the bus stop.

Even on remote Scottish islands you always see people waiting at bus-stops in the middle of nowhere. Not everyone can afford a car (and judging by the DFW board, the obsessive need of some people to live a life that is dependent on car ownership is responsible for a lot of debts)

duchy

Quizzical_Squirrel wrote: »

If I got into my car right now, I could be in New York City in about an hour, door to door.

But in the same breath, I'd also have to drive for a good 15 minutes in any direction to even lay eyes upon public transport! It's just not feasible. You non-drivers would be up a creek round here!

And when you got there you could sit in gridlocked traffic in Manhattan for a further hour and then take out a second mortgage to park..........which is pretty much the same as plenty of places the same driving distance from central London -so what exactly is your point ?

A drive of fifteen minutes to the station before getting on a train is pretty common for many commuters into London too after all.

The mindset in the US is the same in many ways as the UK even in places like Chicago and New York though (less so Boston) with reasonable public transit- The carbound go green around the gills at the thought of leaving the safety of their car- yet millions manage it every day

Obviously if you live in somewhere like Idaho it's a bit different - but the same can be said of parts of rural Britain.

True driving misery has to be the mess that is the LA freeway system in the rush hour.

I'm actually driving from Idaho to Salt Lake City and then onto Vegas next month but I won't touch a car once I get back to LA thankfully as it's just an overnight . My American friends think nothing of a trip like that but the American roads are very different to the British roads (and the NY state roads too) so it's like comparing apples with oranges in the Mid-West .

Peter333

I agree with the people who are saying that being able to drive is quite important. The second I hit 17, I learned to drive, and it was never an option for me to not do so. I always wanted to. My wife and all three of my children drive, and so does just about everyone I know actually. I do also think it's a requirement for many jobs/careers. I do not understand anyone who does not want to learn to drive.

As for only seeking out places that have public transport to decide where to live; I find that so bizarre. I currently live in a beautiful village near woodlands and the river. It has a small population, a lovely Church, an exceptional primary school with only 33 children, and wonderful people; and it is so quiet, crime free and the best place I have ever lived.

There is no public transport however, and the town is 4 miles away. THAT is the only 'disadvantage' (if you want to see it as a disadvantage.) Personally, I don't think it is, as it keeps people away! No way would I sacrifice my beautiful village life to live in a town or city, just so I can get a bus to the shops from outside my house!

Does anyone seriously think that I am going to move from my beautiful little crime-free, quiet, friendly, delightful little village, to a skanky, polluted, chavtastic town with 10s of 1000s (or even 100s of 1000s) of people, houses rammed together, high crime rates, and factories and foundries and over populated sink estates JUST so I can get a bus into town instead of driving?!

Many people living in that environment STILL need a car because of work patterns, and also (as people have said,) a busy lifestyle, children at different schools, and a job with varying shifts and weekend work (as many do,) mean a car is almost essential for most. I have to say, even when we lived on the fringes of a town in the suburbs, there were buses, but we needed to use the car most of the time as they were not frequent enough, and took so much longer to get anywhere than the car. Some places were extremely difficult to get to by bus, and going by car was much easier and quicker. I am talking 10 times quicker in some cases.

To have 'must have public transport' as a deal breaker for a home seems so weird to me. I would have quiet area, low crime rates, good neighbourhood, close to areas of natural beauty, great community, great school, activities for the people, small population etc as 'must haves. '

Having public transport is very low on my list of 'must haves' especially as many people still need a car even when there IS public transport, because much of it is useless and it takes you 10 times longer to get anywhere than your car does! (And as has been mentioned, if you work shifts or late nights, or you work on an industrial park that is off the beaten track as many are, then public transport is useless to you!)

Cycling or walking is not an option in my village, as many people here are elderly, disabled, or stay at home mums with babies, and there is not a village bus or community bus...

I am sure someone will come on and say in their day, they walked 5 miles with 4 kids and 19 bags of shopping, and got home with the skin falling off their feet, or that they cycled 33 miles to work in 20 foot deep snow for 50 years, and did 26 hours a day, 9 days a week.

But the fact is, (for me) that it is 4 miles to the small town near me, so if I did not drive, I would have to get (somehow!) from my house to town, then get a bus to the train station (which is 15 miles from the town,) and then get a train from there to where my work is, then get a bus from the station at that end, to my workplace!!! Fact is, there is no bus or train connections that would enable me to get from my house to my workplace on time! So I drive to work. I have no choice. Or does someone suggest I cycle 30 miles in rain, hail, snow, high winds etc? Do me a favour! :rotfl:

I bet the people saying this kind of thing would not do that; EVER.

I also seriously doubt that car ownership has much to do with debt; you can get a car for three hundred quid. I reckon some people spend far more on public transport than other people spend on running a car! For example, if me and my wife and 3 young adult offspring went to Portsmouth on a train, it would cost £300 return for the three of us, but we can get there and back on £50 of petrol! Bit of a difference. Yes I know there are the running costs of the car, but pound for pound it’s still better value, and waaaaaay more convenient!

And although there are traffic jams on the roads occasionally of course, that can cause delays; public transport delays are MUCH more likely!

You non-drivers all carry on waiting in the rain and wind, and getting soaking wet for the day at the bus stop, and taking 2 hours to get somewhere that takes 20 minutes in the car, and I will keep my car. Thank you.

barbarawright

You may love your delightful little village but it would, quite honestly, be my idea of hell. No cinemas, museums theatres etc etc within easy access. As for buses to shops -why would I want to do that when I live 5 minutes walk from a busy high street?

And let's not even mention environmental concerns

Buzzybee90

barbarawright wrote: »

You may love your delightful little village but it would, quite honestly, be my idea of hell. No cinemas, museums theatres etc etc within easy access. As for buses to shops -why would I want to do that when I live 5 minutes walk from a busy high street?

And let's not even mention environmental concerns

That sounds like my idea of hell.