The Big 'Let's sell our cars and take buses/ebikes instead' thread (warning: probably very dull)
Comments
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We've been forced into one car for much of the last 6 weeks and would have liked to stuck with one. For much of the time it's fine but there are one or two occasions a week where it meant that either my wife or I had to give up doing a regular activity. There are also very occasional times where I need it for work and she also needs to travel to one of the schemes she manages although that will change soon as she starts a new role in the city centre so can get in on the bus. It's frustrating as we are 95% able to get by with one car and it would be good to ditch one just from a financial point of view.briantrumpet said:surrey_commuter said:
we sold our second car about 15 years ago so I guess that makes me a trendsetter.davebradswmb said:
Yes, to be fair it was a year ago, well before this thread was started.TheBigBean said:Anyone sold their car yet?
That may not sound like a big deal but on my street the only others with a single car are widowed pensioners
The two- (or more) car household is one of the major symptoms of the malaise created by the car industry, and why so many families can't imagine possibly managing with one car.
FWIW, my mum never drove, and dad never owned a car: we borrowed my gran's car for family holidays to exotic places like Bude and Westward Ho!0 -
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.0 -
Pross said:
We've been forced into one car for much of the last 6 weeks and would have liked to stuck with one. For much of the time it's fine but there are one or two occasions a week where it meant that either my wife or I had to give up doing a regular activity. There are also very occasional times where I need it for work and she also needs to travel to one of the schemes she manages although that will change soon as she starts a new role in the city centre so can get in on the bus. It's frustrating as we are 95% able to get by with one car and it would be good to ditch one just from a financial point of view.briantrumpet said:surrey_commuter said:
we sold our second car about 15 years ago so I guess that makes me a trendsetter.davebradswmb said:
Yes, to be fair it was a year ago, well before this thread was started.TheBigBean said:Anyone sold their car yet?
That may not sound like a big deal but on my street the only others with a single car are widowed pensioners
The two- (or more) car household is one of the major symptoms of the malaise created by the car industry, and why so many families can't imagine possibly managing with one car.
FWIW, my mum never drove, and dad never owned a car: we borrowed my gran's car for family holidays to exotic places like Bude and Westward Ho!
That sounds like a (probably very common) circumstance where a car shared between several nearby people would save a pile of money. When I look around Topsham and see how many cars are parked up for long stretches, it seems mad that each one is individually owned and rusting away while not used for 95% of the time.
It all points to lack of communal imagination, because individual car ownership has been drummed into our psyche for far too long.0 -
Yeah, a car club would be useful. We managed by borrowing a car off my daughter's boyfriend, a car he bought for his company and that has now been replaced so was sitting spare and which we are now going to buy as a cheap second car. It's bigger than we need but a good price.0
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But you can only drive one car at a time. By having three we are saving the planet by stopping others from driving themsurrey_commuter said:
we sold our second car about 15 years ago so I guess that makes me a trendsetter.davebradswmb said:
Yes, to be fair it was a year ago, well before this thread was started.TheBigBean said:Anyone sold their car yet?
That may not sound like a big deal but on my street the only others with a single car are widowed pensioners
"I spent most of my money on birds, booze and fast cars: the rest of it I just squandered." [George Best]0 -
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.0 -
Sure but as per my thesis, if getting your kids there by car is still the most convenient way to do it, even with all the traffic, you're not gonna have a future proofed system right?kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.
We need to recognise the decline of the efficiency of the car and build a system that replaces that, so we're not just massively inconvenienced by terrible car traffic and no alternatives.0 -
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.
School drop offs are the fundamental issue in traffic and congestion round here. School holidays at rush hour are virtually traffic free. I wonder how much part of the probem is caused by two factors:
- Kids local to the area not being allowed to walk to school as it is now considered too risky.
- Kids getting into a school outside their local area and having to be driven (or choosing/not being allowed by parents to take a bus).
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It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.0 -
Mega problem in Cambridge cos all the many local private schools take on kids from all around the villages that surround Cambridge.MidlandsGrimpeur2 said:Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.
School drop offs are the fundamental issue in traffic and congestion round here. School holidays at rush hour are virtually traffic free. I wonder how much part of the probem is caused by two factors:
- Kids local to the area not being allowed to walk to school as it is now considered too risky.
- Kids getting into a school outside their local area and having to be driven (or choosing/not being allowed by parents to take a bus).0 -
I'm not saying that all the traffic that school holidays removes is optional, but there is some traffic that is optional. The reduction makes such a big difference and not just around schools.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.0 -
And make as many residential roads as possible no-through roads for cars.kingstongraham said:
I'm not saying that all the traffic that school holidays removes is optional, but there is some traffic that is optional. The reduction makes such a big difference and not just around schools.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.2 -
Things can just be inconvenient without a convenient alternative.rick_chasey said:
Absolutely. What’s the problem with that?First.Aspect said:
You do understand that your position is the same as "Well I would recycle but it's too difficult and I will do if they make it easier" ?rick_chasey said:“The system still means the car is the most convenient way to get around but the efficiency and convenience of cars is reducing all the time, so in the future cars won’t be that convenient but if there is no appropriate alternative we will just be more inconvenienced”
The forum:
“SeLl YoUr CaR hYpOcRiT” 🤪🤪🤪
Or, "Well I would be vegan but most food isn't and it is too expensive and time consuming at the moment. I will be vegan when it's more convenient for me to be vegan." ?
If you want everyone to be vegan it can’t be time consuming and expensive? It needs to be convenient and cheap. That’s just obvious1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
Pinnacle Monzonite
Part of the anti-growth coalition0 -
I don't understand why poor people need to get places faster than the rest of us?kingstongraham said:
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now."I spent most of my money on birds, booze and fast cars: the rest of it I just squandered." [George Best]0 -
They don't, they just need to get there just as quick. If public transport was faster than cars then the rich would use it too. And then you could be sure that it would be properly funded and it would work. Less congestion and less pollution. Win/win.Stevo_666 said:
I don't understand why poor people need to get places faster than the rest of us?kingstongraham said:
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.0 -
Can I assume this is a joke?Stevo_666 said:
I don't understand why poor people need to get places faster than the rest of us?kingstongraham said:
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.0 -
You could sit upstairs at the front and make brrm brrm noises if it helps?Stevo_666 said:
I don't understand why poor people need to get places faster than the rest of us?kingstongraham said:
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.0 -
It's someone else's joke, yes.rick_chasey said:
Can I assume this is a joke?Stevo_666 said:
I don't understand why poor people need to get places faster than the rest of us?kingstongraham said:
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
Pinnacle Monzonite
Part of the anti-growth coalition0 -
So that they are already in work to clean your office / make your lunch / sweep the streets so you don't get your shoes dirty walking from the car etc.Stevo_666 said:
I don't understand why poor people need to get places faster than the rest of us?kingstongraham said:
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.0 -
With a little plastic steering wheel stuck to the window by a big suction cup.kingstongraham said:
You could sit upstairs at the front and make brrm brrm noises if it helps?Stevo_666 said:
I don't understand why poor people need to get places faster than the rest of us?kingstongraham said:
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.1 -
If they dont, who will valet park your car when you arrive?Stevo_666 said:
I don't understand why poor people need to get places faster than the rest of us?kingstongraham said:
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.0 -
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The ones who set off nice and early?First.Aspect said:
If they dont, who will valet park your car when you arrive?Stevo_666 said:
I don't understand why poor people need to get places faster than the rest of us?kingstongraham said:
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now."I spent most of my money on birds, booze and fast cars: the rest of it I just squandered." [George Best]0 -
It is, but it's also a fair questionrick_chasey said:
Can I assume this is a joke?Stevo_666 said:
I don't understand why poor people need to get places faster than the rest of us?kingstongraham said:
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now. "I spent most of my money on birds, booze and fast cars: the rest of it I just squandered." [George Best]0 -
It looks like a post in favour of road pricing as a supplement to faster buses.Stevo_666 said:
It is, but it's also a fair questionrick_chasey said:
Can I assume this is a joke?Stevo_666 said:
I don't understand why poor people need to get places faster than the rest of us?kingstongraham said:
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.0 -
If buses are in their own dedicated lane, they can't be obstructing car drivers. It must be something else getting in the way of the 🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🤔Stevo_666 said:
It is, but it's also a fair questionrick_chasey said:
Can I assume this is a joke?Stevo_666 said:
I don't understand why poor people need to get places faster than the rest of us?kingstongraham said:
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now.1985 Mercian King of Mercia - work in progress (Hah! Who am I kidding?)
Pinnacle Monzonite
Part of the anti-growth coalition0 -
Bloody cyclists?0
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I do wonder the outcome of all the bloody cyclists getting in their cars instead.The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
I am not sure. You have no chance.Veronese68 wrote:PB is the most sensible person on here.0 -
I said 'need to', not 'do'rjsterry said:
If buses are in their own dedicated lane, they can't be obstructing car drivers. It must be something else getting in the way of the 🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🤔Stevo_666 said:
It is, but it's also a fair questionrick_chasey said:
Can I assume this is a joke?Stevo_666 said:
I don't understand why poor people need to get places faster than the rest of us?kingstongraham said:
Get the buses moving faster than cars everywhere possible. And by possible, I don't only mean places where that doesn't inconvenience car drivers.Pross said:
It's not necessarily optional though as some of it will be people having to take leave so not driving to work. It's not that big a percentage change either but a tiny amount either side of a junction's capacity has a big impact.kingstongraham said:
Every school holiday shows how much difference a reduction in optional driving would make.rick_chasey said:
Well in which case scrap it all.kingstongraham said:Not much traffic this week.
Average speeds have been declining all over the place for a long time now. "I spent most of my money on birds, booze and fast cars: the rest of it I just squandered." [George Best]0 -
Well since I was banging on about metals in the earth being a limiting factor on electric cars.
One of them isn’t anymore (though refining capacity and location still is)
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