going carless

i have done something evolutionary. i joined austin carshare. i plan to get rid of my 1991 miata, which has served me well for many years, and convert to being a walker, biker, user of public transportation, user of carshare, and appreciative ride sharer with friends and family.

when i returned from maui, my car wouldn't start. i walked to work for a couple of days, then had the car towed to the mechanic's when it wouldn't hold a charge.

i love walking from my mechanic's at i-35 & 38th to work at 15th & congress. in fact, i love walking to and from work, period. i love being in my moving body, connecting to nature, connecting to the city, connecting with the people i encounter, even if just to make eye contact and smile (or not). i don't get those little perks of being a living human being when i'm driving a car.

when the car died again after running for about a week, i figured it was nearing its end. the miata was feeling and showing its age--rattles, a cracked bumper, threadbare upholstery, exhaust stains. for the last few years, i've been crossing my fingers when i took it in for inspection.

also, it only had two seats, a real limitation since my family has grown. although i loved my miata, i didn't want to replace it with another one.

i researched used cars and realized that before i bought another car, i wanted to really check out alternatives. i had not had to make car payments for many years. even though i was averaging 28 mpg with the miata, gas prices, i imagine, will just keep going up. i'm concerned about the environment and want to keep emissions down. and...i just got back from maui, where i was more physically active than usual, and i really enjoyed that. even though my maui vacation ended [sob], hmm, i figured i could continue to feel pretty great by being more physically active in austin.

i remembered reading about austin carshare when it first started in austin, maybe a year ago, and looked it up online, www.austincarshare.org. times have changed.

i live close in, just east of downtown austin, and i work in the capitol complex 1.5 miles from home. the weather in austin is pretty decent most of the time for walking and biking. i need a car most for hauling stuff like groceries home, and for getting places too far to walk or bike or take a bus to, and when the weather is really really bad.

so i decided to give it a try, to commit to using carshare for 4 months, through the end of may. i don't have much to lose when i consider the wellness benefits of walking and biking. i'll keep tabs on my transportation expenses and compare costs. and i will report on my experiences using this blog.

at the end of may i will figure out if i really NEED to buy a used car (and i'll have more money saved for one) or if i want to keep using carshare. when i joined, i made my $300 deposit into a donation, so already i've helped an organization i like and i get a tax write-off. the monthly membership cost is $10, and i pay $4/hour and $.44/mile for actual use.

stay tuned!