How to De-Car

I get asked all the time, "How do you get around or survive in Southern California" without a car?

- "Well, I hop on my broom...."

It is a fair question to someone who has never lived in New York, Chicago, London, Seattle, San Francisco or other metropolitan city, and has only experienced living in a "car culture" community.  So let me tell you the steps to consider if you want to de-car or at least significantly reduce your driving.

(1)  Where do I work?

Start with where you currently work.  Most of the employment I've had has been in workplaces where I showed up to the same location everyday.  I would then go to Metro.net and look at the transit map to see if I can get to my workplace from home by one, no more than two, trips on rail or bus.  Google Maps offers driving directions, but it also offers great transit, cycling, and walking directions on the same app.  NextBus is my preferred app for real time bus arrival information.  I always try to aim to arrive to work early to give myself a cushion of time with traffic.  (We need bus lanes!)  For some people this may mean moving.  However, Metro bus and rail covers most of the County and bicycles go almost anywhere.

(2)  Where do I live?

I choose to live in a walkable neighborhood.  People say, "But Dan, everything you need is only a ten minute walk from you."  Yes, that is a choice.  Everything I need is only a ten minute walk or one transit ride away.  This is a choice I make.  I choose to live in a place that is one or two transit rides away from my workplace AND a ten minute or one bus ride away from everything I need.  I live in West Hollywood, the most walkable city in Southern California and I love it.

(3)  Shopping and laundry?

"What do you do without a trunk?" I get asked.  Fair question.  I learned this living in Manhattan.  I purchase a sturdy and reliable cart from a hardware store as seen here -- which can also be found at Target -- and use it for laundry trips and bigger shopping runs. 

I need to replace the cart every few years.  Much cheaper than replacing an auto in the same period.

(4)  What about identification?

I maintain a driver's license.  I can drive in an emergency.  I just hate driving.  I prefer to use my commuting time reading, listening to enjoyable podcasts, or learning a new language with Duolingo.  Transit has made me smarter.

(5)  Uber / Lyft / Taxi

Honestly, I am personally not a purist.  A couple of times a week I will use an Uber / Lyft / Taxi.  It is still much cheaper than owning, operating, maintaining, fueling, insuring, and parking my own car -- and I'm helping someone else pay their light bill.  If it is not in the budget, I make do without.

That is pretty much it.  It's not a mystery.  Millions of Southern Californians make it work without a car.  There are just some people and a "culture" out here that sometime act as if we are an underclass of some sort.  We end that today.