I once read a book about living happily without a car. But Sarah and I like having at least one around.
We own a 2001 Toyota Corolla with 176,000 miles on it. Sarah brought it into the marriage fully paid for and it currently shows no signs of dying soon. We change the oil and try to keep up with all the maintenance that comes with a car.
We just had a baby, and there has been the temptation to get a second car so that we can both have the freedom to get up and go whenever we like.
Here are four benefits we have discovered while being a one car family:
1. Money – two cars means twice the property taxes, more fuel purchases, more maintenance bills, and many other costs to owning vehicles
2. Health – we have 2 bikes, and since we live in an urban setting, we are just a bike ride away (or city bus) from ANYTHING (from the grocery store to the post office to the places where we work); biking is a fun way to get that cardio workout
3. Time Together – a result of living with one car means more trips together and planning out days and trips so that our car rides meet both of our needs; that means we do a lot of errands together and thus spend lots of time together in transit
4. Environment – we’re not green freaks, but I guess it’s nice to think that we’re only emitting fumes from one car rather than two
So, for now, I guess we’ll keep driving our Corolla ’till it dies without getting anything else.
What works for your family?
