Getting rid of car...(potentially)

[Murf]

I currently commute the 6 miles to work on either a Trek 7200 in the wet or Trek 1.2 in the dry...there is potential to gain another bike (Focus Raven is the main contender) to complete my collection. This would mean i'd have a snow/offroad bike for when/if winter hits.

Funding for the new bike will have to be provided by selling my car which i use probably once a month.

I just really hate paying road tax and insurance on a car that sits on the drive for most of it's life!

Has anyone else been in a similar situation and got rid of a car in favour of a bike only to regret it in the depths of winter?

Am ready for the MTFU comments!

 

[iacula]

I got rid of second car that forced a commute, as wife took the other. I cycled four miles (eight miles a day). I did not regret it, not having a choice changes your attitude. As the Russians say there are no cold days only the wrong clothes. So get some decent kit at the same time as the second bike if you can.

 

[daddyshambles]

what about shopping, holidays, visiting etc etc

I currently commute the 6 miles to work on either a Trek 7200 in the wet or Trek 1.2 in the dry...there is potential to gain another bike (Focus Raven is the main contender) to complete my collection. This would mean i'd have a snow/offroad bike for when/if winter hits.

Funding for the new bike will have to be provided by selling my car which i use probably once a month.

I just really hate paying road tax and insurance on a car that sits on the drive for most of it's life!

Has anyone else been in a similar situation and got rid of a car in favour of a bike only to regret it in the depths of winter?

Am ready for the MTFU comments!

 

[fixedfixer]

what about shopping, holidays, visiting etc etc

1) I let tesco deliver the heavy stuff, I bike to shops for fresh stuff
2) Always cycle camp - use the European bike express for abroad
3) Take folder on train to visit folks far away

Just think different. Think Bike.

And to original poster, why stop at 3 bikes? 6 feels about the right number, there's lots of space in the garage for them and a decent bike workstand.

 

[SavageHoutkop]

I don't own a car, and did the 5.3 mile each way commute all of last winter, excepting that I had recourse to a train if needed. I did train home some days as I didn't fancy the idea of cycling in the dark on the compacted slush, but did cycle in 99% of the time.

Go for it!!!

[how do you get to work at the moment in the depths of awful weather?]

 

[upsidedown]

Go for it, sounds like you've no real reason to have a car. Worst case is you might need to rent one for the odd day. I'm of pretty much the same mindset,it doesn't really occur to me to take the car.

Paul

 

[SavageHoutkop]

what about shopping, holidays, visiting etc etc

You can fit a great deal on a bike, for starters. (I say this even though I ride a Brompton!).
The big stuff gets delivered (I don't use supermarkets).

Holidays - why on earth would you keep a car just for one/two holidays a year? With the underlying cost it's vastly cheaper to hire a car. However, it's much more relaxing to train.

Visiting - public transport etc. If necessary, again a hire car.

 

[Murf]

Thanks for all the great replies. All very encouraging.

We'd still have the family car that the wife uses generally. It would be my getting to work car that'd be sold. Over the last few months the car has become a secondary form of transport. I actually feel a bit guilty and as if i've failed if i don't come in on the bike.

It got me to thinking that i should sell it and then if i don't have the choice it makes things a lot simpler (cheaper) for me.

My only real concern is that i work shifts 6-2 2-10 10-6 and my route is probably 30% Road 70% cyclepath. The latter would never be gritted in the really cold weather.

In the previous winters i've cherry picked which days to take the bike and when i wanted to use the car.

 

[MGBLemonrider]

I'm very much in the same boat. Over the last year I've cycle commuted daily with the only exceptions being the snow days last winter and two days last month when on nights and was feeling a bit unwell and the following day I was finishing nights and wanted to catch an afternoon ferry so would have benefited my getting to bed the hour earlier.
So the car gets used occasional and the Galaxy only gets used for family trips. We also used to justify the second vehicle as one of the children used to spend extended periods in specialist hospitals, thankfully this seems to be a thing of the past. Had I known this three years ago I wouldn't have replaced the car when the engine blew up on the last one.
One of the local CTC does a very similar commute to me to the same town, although not a shift worker, he managed fine in the snow on his MTB on the minor lanes. So I was looking at doing the same this year. I had permission for a MTB but wanted to spend the money on a dynohub set up instead.

My hand has been forced. I had a fit last week so I'm now a non driver ( for a year currently - subject to review following MRI and whatever the DVLA decide in the following 90 working days) I went ahead and ordered my dynohub - arrived to day and will also get a MTB later.

 

[Murf]

Sorry to hear about that. Hope it's not too serious.

 

[mark i]

Sorry to hear about the fit, hopefully things are stabilising.

To the first poster, we used to be a 2 car family then twigged that we could lift share and dump one of the cars. We then had a Son, and lift sharing did not work as we could not make it back in time to collect my son. Before we went to two cars I wanted to work out if we needed to. We went for a folder and the train. I then discovered the cycle all the way home and use an old mountain bike. I now use the train on the way in and cycle all the way home. As someone said it changes your mindset, you have to cycle, but it is not a problem if you have the clothing to deal with the weather (skull caps, windproof / waterproof gloves, overshoes etc).

Last winter was a challenge, most of the roads that I use for the long cycle are not gritted so I used the train. Most days knobbly tyres took car of things, we had one day when it snowed on rained on roads leaving ice under snow. I think that I beat most of the cars, when the going was silly, i.e. cars wheelspinning to try to get up hills I could walk, when it was flat I could cycle on the other side of the road, it was a longer commute, but I overtook all the cars. Am thinking about studded tyres for this winter, two sets of wheels is handy. When you work out the savings of depreciation, road tax, insurance, servicing, maintanence etc it is a massive sum!

Mark

 

[Deleted member 1258]

I haven't owned a car since 1979, we brought our family up without having a car.

 

[g00se]

Me and the family have been carless for about 10 months now. It's worked fine but we are in a bit of a lucky position in that we live near the centre of town and there are some decent shops down the end of the road.

If we need to do a big shop, then we get a supermarket to deliver. For the odd, long trips, we either hire a car or borrow a friends (we paid the 20 quid to be put on their insurance). But that's only once a month or so.

The only real pain can be getting the little one to nursery when the weather is foul - but currently, she's likes the rain when on the bikeseat, so that's not too bad...

 

[TonbridgeSteve]

I did the same thing last year. We have a family car and had a second car for me to get to work, having moved house we were looking for ways to save money so I started commuting on the bike. I started last summer, sold the car in January when the MOT run out and not had any problems. I managed to cycle most of the days during the snow but took a train a couple of times.

I have assumed that their will be sometimes that I am unable to cycle in (if I'm not well enough/bad snow or ice, etc) however even allowing for if I needed to use public transport or even a taxi some of the time it is still alot cheaper than running the second car.

 

[Murf]

After LoooOOOoOoong deliberation and riding to work 5 days a week through the worst the winter can manage, i've finally bitten the bullet and sold the car! Bought myself a Boardman Team Hardtail with some of the proceeds and the rest has gone into a rainy day fund.

I now have a choice of the MTB, Trek 1.2, Trek 7200 and a Raleigh Yukon single speed steelie. Should make things more interesting.

Just about to finish the first week of not having the choice and still very much enjoying things. The mornings are getting lighter and was wearing shorts at 5 this morning.