Why I Ditched the Car and Regained My Youthful Freedom

Most of us equate owning a car as having ‘freedom’: freedom to go where we want, when we want. We couldn’t wait to turn 16, to have the freedom to drive ourselves where we wanted to go instead of rely on our parents or older siblings. That was the ultimate feeling of getting close to adulthood. Well, what we failed to realize, was that in most situations, it was mom and dad that made that ‘freedom’ possible. Even if we had to pay for gas and insurance, we most likely borrowed a car from our parents. Even if someone did save up money to buy their own car, it was usually because at 16, a person typically doesn’t have many other bills such as rent, groceries or utilities. However, fast forward to college graduation and everything changes. That same car that symbolized freedom now has many of us chained to a 40 hour a week job with no real true freedom in our schedules. We are given an hour lunch, and some of us may be lucky to get four weeks of vacation per year, but only to be used with permission from the boss. Is this really freedom? I prefer another kind of freedom: the freedom that comes from giving up a car. I recently sold my car and, along with getting rid of many other unnecessary expenses in my life, I was able to feel comfortable to quit my job and pursue the things that I really want to do in life. But most importantly, I wanted to take back freedom of my schedule. In future posts, I will go into more detail about how I downsized my life in other ways for a truly freeing feeling and how to pursue residual income so that you will not feel obligated to have a car for a ‘job’. And if you do like your job, or are not ready to leave yet, this post will highlight how going car free does not mean sacrifice or less money earned, but rather how it provides tremendous benefits to our optimization of health, wealth and happiness. 

First off, as stated in previous posts, this blog is not about reducing our environmental impact, but rather obtaining a higher quality of life, through the simplicity concept, which will naturally have us treading lighter on the planet.

With that said, however, I feel it is necessary to point out that, driving use aside, the physical roads themselves are an environmental and human health nightmare, from destruction of ecosystems and habitats, to incredible amounts of pollution (water/air/noise/light) and a runaway urban heat island effect. Not to mention the excessive embedded energy, water and waste contents.  I won’t go into the details, but you can do an internet search for “environmental impact of roads” for more information. Secondly, the manufacturing and disposal of vehicles, even the supposedly “eco friendly” hybrids and electric vehicles, is also completely unsustainable and we are nowhere near a solution to reduce the environmental and social impacts of this process.  That is why this post is about going car-free or car-lite, not just trading your hummer for a hybrid, while your driving habits stay the same. Technology will not bring us eco-bliss, behavior changes will. To be truly sustainable, we need to reduce the miles driven and put more drivers into each car, rather than worry about miles per gallon. If we can achieve this, then we might be able to reduce sprawl, abandon roads and restore habitats.

[Note: For brevity, I will use car-free for the remainder of the post, but for all practical purposes it is interchangeable with car-lite and that might be a more reasonable balance for most people anyway.]

So, with the environmental acknowledgment out of the way, let’s talk about how going car-free can bring about a more care-free life for optimum health, wealth and happiness.  

Going car free has a tremendous benefit to our health. Probably the most beneficial and obvious is that we can get more exercise by walking, biking or running in place of using a car. I have only been car-free for a month and my boyfriend already notices that I lost weight and toned up! Also, I have no stress from long commutes or traffic jams. Instead, I am getting fresh air, sunlight and exercise, which makes me feel great! Carpoolers are also much less likely to have traffic related stress because they are engaged in friendly conversation. Lastly, and sadly, a car accident can take away your freedom of personal mobility in the near term, or possibly even for life.

Going car free can be an excellent path to financial independence! The typical yearly maintenance costs associated with owning a car can run upwards of several thousands of dollars. That does not even take into account the car payments or depreciation.  Accidents also cost a lot with the obvious insurance deductibles, but there could also be lost productivity time which can cost money, whether missing work for an employer or even if you are self-employed. Walking, biking or running as a way to commute can save on monthly gym fees, diet supplements and personal trainers. This improved health also means money saved on medical expenses in the long term. The worst financial pitfall of car ownership though can sometimes be the spontaneous shopping that takes place with the convenience of a car. If we have a whim to buy something, we can just hop in the car and go. Additionally, cars make us more likely to shop at big box stores, rather than a quaint mom and pop shop on Main Street, so there is the added enticement to purchase more 'stuff' than intended. This can be a huge drain on the wallet. Since I am car-free, I really need to plan my purchases, which means less impulse purchasing and better budgeting. Lastly, roads cost local governments a lot of money to maintain, so certain municipalities are now considering taxing drivers by miles driven, so preparing now for car-free living, could be money ahead in the future.  

The added exercise while commuting keeps us happy because endorphins are released and because we are getting fresh air and sunshine. But, the real benefit, in my opinion, is no road rage! Getting exercise while we commute also provides a huge time savings advantage because we are completing two necessary tasks at once. This gives an instant productivity boost to our days! Also, when we get out of the car, we spend more time aware of our surroundings and in the present moment. We may also get to know our neighbors better since we are not isolated in a car. Lastly, commuting by bike and foot reminds me of my playful, care-free childhood days.

So, with this said, why are we so fascinated and tethered to our cars? Why do we use cars to ‘identify’ ourselves? Have cars created an unintended ‘busyness’ that is unsustainable? For true health, wealth and happiness, we need to think outside the metal box.

If you want more in depth strategies on going car-free, I highly recommend the book "How to Live Well Without Owning a Car", by Chris Balish.