I'm looking at retirement and one thing that goes along with that is trying to look at all the expenses I have and try to limit them as much as possible.
One expense that I really hate is that of having a vehicle.
They are expensive to buy, they are expensive to maintain, they take up a bunch of parking space, and they are expensive to insure. In that regard when I dropped my hours considerably I figured I could just walk to work, walk to get groceries, and share a car with my wife. I really REALLY wanted to make it work.
But things didn't work out that way.
I can walk to work in about 40 minutes. It isn't a terrible time for commute but it is a considerable distance at just over 3km. On a nice day 3km isn't actually a bad walk. On paper it doesn't sound like any longer than many people make for their average daily commute.
But what about rainy days, snowy days, or scorching hot days? That 40 minutes in bad weather gets a lot less enticing. However, I also found a different issue. After having a long day at work and being tired and grumpy from dealing with customers....then I had to walk home for 40 minutes when I was tired and hungry and didn't want to be trudging down the road.
So I thought about riding a bike. After all I can bike to work in a very short period of time. 8 minutes or so. Easy. I would be right, except biking in work clothes isn't much fun and I look pretty silly. However, when the bad weather comes the spray from the road will ruin my clothing making me look far less than professional. As a result I either carry my work clothes and change at work or put on protective outerwear. Both of which mean I'm stuck using extra time to get ready for work and my work isn't really setup for that.
Which of course leaves me taking public transit. However, public transit isn't that cheap. More importantly it takes a long time to get from where I live to where I need to go. The trip would take longer than it would take to just walk to work. Why would I pay money for a trip on bus that I can walk faster?
Then there is ride sharing and for the few times that I go to work it would likely be about the same price as getting a monthly bus pass. However, then I have to look at things like going to appointments and getting groceries and such. Factor that in and it just doesn't make sense any more.
The grocery store? Again, just on the edge of walking range at about 15-20min walk. In good weather? No problem at all. Even in bad weather its not that far. But how about when I'm loaded up with groceries? I suppose that I could do it, but with two hungry young adults in the house it means carrying large amounts of groceries which threaten to pull my arms off while walking the 15-20min home.
While I wish that one vehicle was possible I found that after a year I just couldn't do it. I had to break down and buy a vehicle. However, I picked a vehicle that had the lowest possible operating costs, lowest insurance costs, and lowest cost to purchase. In the end I got one really cheap and really ugly vehicle.
A Mitsubishi Imiev
Image Source: My vehicle in the garage
My kids think it is a golf cart on wheels. With only a 60km range as it has a worn out battery I would tend to agree with them. However, as a short range vehicle I get a low mileage discount on insurance. As an inexpensive vehicle I get cheap insurance. With free EV charging in town and a very small battery to fill it costs almost nothing to run. With no maintenance schedule to speak of my repair costs are virtually nothing.
My vehicle costs about the same amount to operate monthly as a bus pass
Overall I pay about $120/month to operate my vehicle. A bus pass is about $100/month. If I add a senior discount and choose lower insurance levels its actually cheaper to own my vehicle than it is to take public transit.
So, I swallow my pride and grumble about having to have a second vehicle. Since my kids travel long distances to work and school they need to have vehicles also. As a result there are 4 vehicles parked in my driveway and it irritates me every time I look at them.
I long for the day when self driving electric vehicles become the norm. When I can just use an app to get a ride from where I am to where I need to go. Where public transit is fully automated and goes wherever I need in a timely fashion.
Unfortunately I live in Canada where there are very long distances between places and no long distance busses and very poor regional transit. There just isn't the population density needed to make transit good.
Which brings me to my time in my other retirement place. The Philippines. When I'm there it is so nice. I can hire a rideshare service to a reasonable amount. I can take public transit for a cheap amount. I don't have to pay huge amounts of money and I can get virtually anywhere I need to go. In Canada I wish I could get away from a vehicle but just haven't found it realistic. When I'm in the Philippines I just can't find a reason that I would ever want to own a vehicle. Sure there is the prestige of owning my own car when there. Sure there is the ability to go anywhere anytime without needing to use an app or share a ride with others.....but those are minor issues for me. I don't mind waiting a few minutes for a ride or sharing seats. I do mind sitting at a Canadian bus stop for half an hour onto to have to make a connection that will make me wait for another half hour just to make a 40 minute walk disappear.
I mention all this because some people want to save the planet by limiting the number of vehicles a person has. Ideas like mandatory public transportation. One vehicle per person. Only drive your car on alternate days of the week or many other schemes. It is easy to try to lump everyone together and try to make a rule.
But it just doesn't work.
Some areas just require a vehicle. The suburbs where I live don't require a car but it is so inconvenient without one that it may as well be a requirement.
My rural property up north? I'm so far from neighbors that a vehicle IS a necessity. Without it I'm unable to get to food or even basic services. Just walking to the nearest groceries would be 4.5hrs return. Indeed I would likely want to have two vehicles if possible. If one breaks down I want a backup!
But even then one vehicle doesn't fit all purposes. My current vehicle only travels 60km so I am very limited in where it can go. My wife's vehicle is much better at going anywhere but it is a bit big for going around town. My son's car is great for going back and forth to school and going wherever he needs to go.....except for the ski hills as it doesn't have good clearance for the snow.
In that regard, sometimes multiple vehicles are needed for multiple purposes. Limiting a person in their vehicle type of number limits their flexibility and things that they may actually NEED
Then again, whenever possible I look for alternatives. I really do dislike private vehicle ownership. I loathe the amount of areas that are paved over when they could be so much better used. I hate the pollution from so many cars. I love public transit when it works and long for the day when AI and autonomous driving make my car driving days a thing of the past.
Thanks for reading and as always I love getting comments either for or against.
