elizabeth byrne

i guess it is a bit unfair for me to join this, since i already live a car free life. i am a bike commuter in san francisco, where it is actually easier to get around without using a car than it is to take the time to look for parking. however, i decided to join this challenge so i can share my experiences with people so they can see that it is possible to cut out trips in the car and replace them with biking or walking, which is much healthier for both us and the environment.

i sold my car and replaced it with a bike 4-5 years ago. it was such a pain to find parking that i already had stopped driving and was using public transit. my plates were about to expire and i was thinking about how much i would have to pay to register a car that basically sat in the street until street cleaning day, when i would move it around the block. i thought about how much i paid for insurance and decided that instead of renewing the plates, i would just sell the car. i would take the money i spent on insurance, gas, and parking tickets and save it to do things like travel, or go out to dinner, or donate to good causes. i looked in to city carshare and zipcar as alternatives to owning a car, and made the decision that if i did need a car for a few days, it would be cheaper to rent one than it would to register, insure and maintain the car i currently owned. so i did it. i sold my car to a teacher in oakland, bought my bianchi and it was the best decision i have ever made.

so here i am now, a few years later. i know from experience that i can get around without a car. i go to the grocery store on my bike. i go to the movies, to dinner, even out to bars on my bike. i bike to work. there is nothing better than riding to work on a sunny day and having all green lights when i am going down the hill on post street. at the same time, there is also something great about the rain hitting your face when riding.

so what brought me here? i have been looking at the photos of the oil spill in the gulf and literally feeling sick. it is heartbreaking for me to see this, and even though i have reduced my oil consumption, i feel like i could still do more. i feel like if i do this challenge, i can raise awareness to how our decisions as consumers affect this planet. and maybe, just maybe, i can help someone else realize that they too can reduce their carbon footprint. and then maybe they can help someone else realize that. and eventually people who want to make the world a better place will be the majority and we can reverse the destruction that has been done to our planet. big dreams, i know, but i have to at least try. so i will be blogging about the car free life for a week. hopefully someone reads this and decided to try it out. even just replacing one car trip a week with a walk, or a bike ride, public transit, a car share program, carpool for work, etc. can make an impact.