Ditch the car and get a bike, a transit farecard, and a smartphone.Photo: NoktonCross-posted from Shareable.
Two years ago, my California driver’s license expired. Living in Chicago at the time, where the smart resident uses bikes or public transit to avoid traffic, I hadn’t found a compelling reason to get behind the wheel of our car in months. With plenty of other pressing tasks on my to-do list, renewing or replacing an expired out-of-state license quickly plummeted to the bottom of my priorities.
Two years later, the license is still expired, and I’m happier, healthier, and richer for it. There’s something liberating about not having to deal with the stress and the hassle associated with driving — check-up and repairs, yearly registration, insurance bills, parking tickets — thousands of dollars a year thrown away to maintain a convenience that felt more like a burden. As gas prices creep towards $5 a gallon, I can’t help wonder how many of the folks who are considering switching to a hybrid to save cash and the environment are doing so more out of inertia than need.
The AAA states that the average yearly cost of... Read more
