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I sold my car ~8 months ago. I still think its one of the best decisions I've ever made. I paid off some loans and I save about $130 a month without parking, gas, and insurance costs.
But what about when I have trips where I HAVE to drive? Well, I here's what I do: (1/)
But what about when I have trips where I HAVE to drive? Well, I here's what I do: (1/)
Before I explain, I want to disclose 2 things:
1. I'm car-less by choice. I live in a walkable area + have a transit pass through work. I know that's not possible for everyone.
2. My partner has a car. But I don't always think it's fair to use his car on trips for myself. (2/)
1. I'm car-less by choice. I live in a walkable area + have a transit pass through work. I know that's not possible for everyone.
2. My partner has a car. But I don't always think it's fair to use his car on trips for myself. (2/)
But I recently had to take a trip to Pittsburgh. Amktrak's 1:00a train schedule just wasn't going to do it for me and flying would be silly.
So I rented a car. After all, I still have a driver's license. (3/)
So I rented a car. After all, I still have a driver's license. (3/)
I booked the cheapest option they had ("supplier's choice") and added on the insurance, just to be safe. I booked for 1 day, which was the only amount of time I needed.
I purposely picked a rental car at the airport because I knew I could get there by transit. (4/)
I purposely picked a rental car at the airport because I knew I could get there by transit. (4/)
The day of my trip, I hopped on the train to the airport and made my way to the ground transportation floor.
From there, the free shuttle took me over to the rental lot and I had a nice conversation with the shuttle driver who asked me how I liked living in the city. (5/)
From there, the free shuttle took me over to the rental lot and I had a nice conversation with the shuttle driver who asked me how I liked living in the city. (5/)
Since I booked my rental ahead of time, all I had to do was sign some papers + confirm who I was.
The attendant asked me if I wanted a big SUV (lol no thanks). Instead I asked for a small car, which I knew would get better gas mileage. I also accepted the Toll Pass. (6/)
The attendant asked me if I wanted a big SUV (lol no thanks). Instead I asked for a small car, which I knew would get better gas mileage. I also accepted the Toll Pass. (6/)
So then me and my little Nissan Versa made our way to PGH and back, jamming to some Pitbull radio.
On my way back, I filled up the tank with 6 gallons of gas, returned the car, took the shuttle back to the airport, and took the train home. (7/)
On my way back, I filled up the tank with 6 gallons of gas, returned the car, took the shuttle back to the airport, and took the train home. (7/)
My total cost: $63 (car) + $13 (insurance) + $18 (gas) + $4 (tolls) = $98.
Not exactly cheap, but I don't take trips like this every weekend. It was still less than my monthly cost of owning a car ($130) and I didn't have to worry about maintenance or repairs. (8/)
Not exactly cheap, but I don't take trips like this every weekend. It was still less than my monthly cost of owning a car ($130) and I didn't have to worry about maintenance or repairs. (8/)
The average cost of owning a car is ~$9,000/ year. Even if I took 2 trips like this every month, I still wouldn't spend that much.
My point is that car ownership is expensive. With some planning, you can totally travel + live without owning a car. (End/)
My point is that car ownership is expensive. With some planning, you can totally travel + live without owning a car. (End/)
