The Myth of the Open Road
I bike pretty much everywhere in the city these days. But I also have a driver’s license and 16 years of driving experience. And occasionally I still drive. Like the other day I ended up driving across town to run an errand. Now, if you live anywhere near a city, you know that the driving experience is not exactly as advertised:
It’s a little bit more like this:
Which is not a good advertisement for cars. But this is exactly what I found myself driving in.
After my errand, I decided I wanted to stay out. I was hungry and there are great restaurants downtown. And some shops too. (I know, because I discovered them all by bike.) But in a car, I realized that I couldn’t casually go to any of them. I was trapped…
…and had to pass them by. It was like I was carrying the weight of the car rather than it carrying me. And I was tired. So I went straight home instead. Cars are useful, but driving in a city is kind of like trying to thread a needle while wearing a boxing glove.
@ Bekka,
“That cyclist is slowing us down.” Classic. 😉
Exactly, I hate the way car commecials also connect you to nature, as if the car is part of nature. Yes, you can actually drive right onto the beach! Yes, you can drive right over that river and onto the beaver dam! I live in the country and I can see drivers trying to live that fantasy. They drive very fast, very very fast because the car commercials show cars going very very fast-usually on closed roads or actual testing tracks and driven by pro drivers who know how to handle curves etc.. My only car was a bmw and lasted about 2 years. I did think I was in a car commercial! Sadly I also know that riding into the nearest town only takes a bit longer than driving once you factor in traffic, stop lights, trying to find parking etc..
Living without a car in rural areas is more challenging and sometimes wish I had one because the vast distances mean I have to cut out alot of things. Which is fine because the cost and sacrifice of owning and running a car is far too high for me. I recommend that if you want to move to the country and are a cyclist, consider the area, are there communities within biking distances that have stores, services etc..? Are there quiet rural roads or only a nasty snarly highway? Is there a bus system? My area has public transit and while not stellar, it will get me to the towns in either direction, and to the ferry terminal for big city girl days.
We recently rented a car for 2 days to do a bunch of summer stuff we’d been missing out on like going up to swimming lakes and such. A solid summer of hot weather and we rent the car, and guess what? It rained and was cold! We couldn’t just stop and check anything out, it involved turning around, trying to park over and over.
It is true that by biking you get to see so much more and support local businesses. Extra money not wasted on car ownership can buy cupcakes, pie and coffee to refuel and ride some more.
You haven’t driven a Mini, have you? ;
Depending on your circumstances, cars may make sense, sometimes. I live far enough out of town that driving is always faster than riding. And doing a two child drop off at preschool in the winter is impossible for me. Having said that, a commute across Cambridge is quite an enjoyable part of my day when I can do it.
No one is irresponsible for riding a bike but driving a car is often a necessity because of how we organized our older cities, which were built for horses and bikes. We would have parking in urban areas if cities were indeed designed for cars.
Enough distance will force me off a bike, but carrying two kids on a bike is pretty easy, with the right bike. Same with winter. For example:
http://www.copenhagenize.com/2011/01/cycling-in-winter-in-copenhagen.html
For a little extra grip on the ice, there’s studs: http://dr2chase.wordpress.com/2007/12/17/good-ice/
And if I didn’t drive in the winter, I wouldn’t need to shovel all that darn driveway, and wouldn’t that be nice?
I’m only in someone’s car less than 10 times annually. I always forget sometimes how much effort there is to find parking just to go to a restaurant of choice downtown in big cities.
You’ve so drawn me the other day driving my daughter to gymnastics (which is half across town and you simply cannot ride through downtown traffic with an eight-year-old on her bike) and then tried to do some shopping while she was there. I had an hour, and the car, and it simply wasn’t possible to drive to a nearby shopping street, park the car, buy stuff, and drive back in that time! With the bike, I would have done it in 40mins. Thinking of buying a folding bike to deposit it in the trunk.