Going Car-less

I've been fantasizing about getting rid of my car, but there is a part of me that loves the convenience of having it and is a little afraid to give that up. I've been doing some research, looking into alternative modes of transportation and trying to apply the idea of not having a car to my current lifestyle. I live close enough to the train to take a short walk, hop on and go pretty much anywhere I want in the city.

I haven't owned a bike for a while so I started looking into buying a new one and the choices are endless! For the first time I discovered folding bikes. The CTA does not allow regular bikes on the trains during rush hours (7am-9am and 4pm-6pm), but folding bikes are allowed during these times. This is a plus for me because if I get rid of the car and getting on the train with my bike is the only option to get somewhere then it would be much more convenient to not have to worry about avoiding the rush hours.


I started searching for folding bikes and I came across this article on TreeHugger. This is the folding bike of my dreams! Not only do I love the colors, but the design is amazing. Making use of the center of the bike with the circular frame which the wheels fold into is genius! Unfortunately, this bike doesn't exist. It's only a concept design by Czech artist Josef Cadek. So I am currently shopping for a bike...

I started imagining myself doing everything on a bike instead of in a car. Most things seem manageable aside from grocery shopping. It was at this juncture that I discovered cargo bike trailers. This is exactly what I had in mind when I imagined a bike trailer for my groceries. However, I'm on a very tight budget and... check out that price tag... yikes! The advantages to dating an engineer are many and my lovely boyfriend suggested that we build our own. So I am currently in the planning stages of constructing my own bike trailer...

Aside from grocery shopping I usually make a weekly trip out of the city to do some rock climbing. Public transportation isn't an option here and neither is riding my bike (because of the distance). Enter the Zipcar! I did some research on their website and discovered a zipcar location super close to my house. Yay! Before the Igo lovers get upset let me just say that I also checked them out, but they don't have any car locations near me. So Zipcar wins by default. The Zipcar will also come in handy when weather does not permit me to ride my bike.

I'm still weighing the pros and cons of giving up my car, but I'm starting to lean towards giving it up. The plan as it stands right now is to purchase a bike and try going without my car for 30 days as a trial run.