(More or less) car-free lifestyles--chat about (more or less) car-free lifestyles

@ Scott...respect is due and all, but actually i think that this is a highly valid thread that should stand on it's own, the fact that it may have been born as a reaction to "the car thread" is probably a good thing......there are probably loads of people too scared to post what they really think about cars over there for fear of being labelled a "hater" when in reality theres quite a lot of sense in being a hater of "car culture" if not the actual cars themselves.

I agree, I'd certainly say that I have a very high degree of antipathy for 'car "culture"'. I wouldn't say I hate it, as again that's not very productive, but I think that reducing the amount of car use is easy wins all round and showing people where transportational utility really lies (e.g., quite often the transportational utility of walking or cycling is far higher than that of driving) is highly rewarding and positive.

Emotions understandably run high about it, which is why the word 'hatred' seems to come into it so much, but I think the more informed debate there is, the more people will see that it's not black-and-white, or either-or; viz. Rollapaluza, or indeed most people who do jobs and need to carry heavy equipment around. A friend of mine paints, decorates, repairs, refurbishes, etc. for a living. When he starts on a job, which can take him anything from a couple of days to a couple of weeks, he drives his van to the place with the bike in the back, leaves it there, and then cycles to work every day. It's sensible strategies like this that change things.

Personally this thread has already made me question the use of my car and whether I use it too much.....I like to kid myself that I've got loads of green "credits" stacked up as in the 22 years I've been eilgible to drive I've only owned a car for three and driven less than 30k ....previously having only used public transport and my bike...however don't think global warming works like that does it? it's what we're doing NOW that matters.

It is--and reducing car use is of course about so much more than climate chaos. Cycling is fun, rewarding, healthy, etc. and when I'm out doing an LCC stall or otherwise campaigning I find I hardly even get to mention the effect on the environment among all the other positives. I wish people were more interested in environmental sustainability, but it's the outcome that matters.

I occasionally have to drive in London for work....why anyone would choose to do this as a method of personal transport is totally beyond me, unbelievably slow and frustrating, no wonder there's road rage and anger against cyclists.....it's almost understandable!

Quite--many drivers are victims of motor dependence. They actually, deep down, don't like driving--who likes spending one and a half hours, three hours for the round trip, commuting between different towns, for instance? It leaves little time for the family and if anything goes wrong there's often no slack built in. But that's a reality for many people today, and there's a continuum of people who can make more sustainable transport choices now, and those who will probably only be able to do this once a greater consensus has been established and conditions are more in their favour.