Stopped driving? Don’t own a car?

[Greenbelt]

Developers plan bike-only development (in South Carolina!): http://www.wltx.com/news/story.aspx?storyid=87883&catid=2

[Mikey]

My name is Mike Essig. My wife and I live out in Fairfax County and I used to commute into the district every day. We are a family of 5 with 3 young kids (aged 6,5,3). 14 months ago I gave up my car to bike commute. At first I would bike to the VRE train station, ride the train downtown and use Capital Bikeshare to get near my office. I did this for a year, and then swapped over to taking my bike on the Metrobus. I ride the bus to the Pentagon and bike in to my office. About once or twice a week I ride my bike the entire way in. Our two cars are a Honda Pilot and a Honda Civic Hybrid. I used to commute with the hybrid, but last year it sat so long in the parking lot of my townhome development that it had cobwebs on it (literally). With the rising gas prices my wife and I have shuffled around our many car seats and she now totes the kids around in the 40mpg civic instead of the 19mpg Pilot. With the nice weather, my wife has been pulling the kids around on her bike with a bike seat and double charriot bike trailer. We went from buying gas twice 3 times a month for the civic and twice a month for the Pilot (~$270/month) to buying gas once a month for each car (~$110). We really thought about giving up the car altogether last fall when the taxes and registrations were due, but we figured it was worth the $250 to have a car available in an emergency. Since then we have saved that much by leaving the SUV in the driveway.

Not sure if this was exactly what you were looking for but it is my story.

Mike Essig
essigmw@gmail.com
202-781-3171 (before 4pm)
571-244-8250 (after 5pm)

[Terpfan]

My switch to mostly bicycling was driven by a few events. My old car broke down, literally the day before I started a new job and my new job was very easily Metro and bike accessible. I did the Metro thing for a few months and then figured if I made 100 trips by bike that it would pay for itself. Equally important, I wanted to get into shape, but without giving up extra time to go to the gym. My commute from north Old Town to McPherson Square area takes about 30 minutes and when you toss in the shower and getting dressed, probably 40 minutes overall. My commute via Metro took about 25-35 minutes depending on traffic (if I took the express bus) or train delays (which seemed like every day via rail). So I really don’t lose much time, I get a good workout, and my ride takes me past National Airport, along and across the Potomac, past the Jefferson Memorial, past the Washington Monument, briefly along the Mall with a view of the Capitol and then past the White House. While I grew up in the area having seen and visited all these places numerous times, I do find it refreshing that I can ride along mostly bike trails (Mount Vernon Trail, Tidal Basin/Ohio Drive sidewalks/15th St Cycletrack) almost the entire way and it’s scenic. I figure I get my 1 hour of good exercise a day, save about $7, enjoy the outdoors and sometimes even beat Metro and traffic home then what’s to complain about?

I didn’t totally give up car ownership. While I no longer own a car (and I do somewhat nostagically miss my old piece of crap car), my girlfriend does have a car that I can use as well. Recently she even switched to biking to the Metro and then Metroing in. Her reason was similar to Mike’s above–gas and parking lot prices went up. Instead of filling up 3-4 x a month, we do with 2 tops.

It took me getting into bike commuting to realize just how interconnected the DC area was with bike trails. I had done the CCT when it first opened when I was younger and some of Rock Creek Park, but I had barely explored MVT until living in the area, or W&OD, or 4 Mile Run, Metro Branch Trail, etc, etc. And I think the cycletracks really help a lot in downtown because they help people who were on the fence before like me to bike in (I don’t mind roads at all now). Some of my friends who drive or Metro joke around, but I remind them I’m making their train car less crowded and their traffic one car less getting home. I only wish I had figured this all out years ago.

[Arlingtonrider]

A lot of my car trips were very short ones – one to three miles, which can be hard on a car. I now use my bike for almost all of those errands. It’s also easier to park a bike.

I recently heard someone (it might have been the CEO of Volkswagon US, talking about how cars and bikes complement each other) say that you don’t need to propel 3,000 pounds of metal to go one mile to buy a half gallon of milk. That hit home with me. I ride my bike to work and have a rack and panniers, so carrying things is pretty easy. A backpack also works.

As far as riding to work goes, I enjoy the scenery and exercise. It takes the roughly the same amount of time I spent going by bus and metro, but is much more predictable. I started biking to work after I discovered that I could ride on trails nearly all of the 8 miles between my home and office.

[Dirt]

Many people are tempted by the draw of riding to work instead of driving, but they get sidetracked by little excuses that crop up in the morning. One of the best tips that I can give to anyone who is thinking of trying commuting by bike is to get everything ready the night before. Make it so that you can wake up, put your clothes on, drink your coffee and roll out the door. If your cycling bag is all packed up, it will actually be MORE work to drive than to ride… which is a GREAT excuse not to drive.

That helps you get into the swing of commuting. Even after 33+ years of commuting to work by bike, I still do that almost every day. The hardest decision I make before leaving the house each morning is where to put my coffee mug… in the sink or on the counter.

[Greenbelt]

For those of us living farther out in the suburbs, the biggest impediment to more bike commuting is simply getting the word out the there are beautiful trails and pleasant side streets that can get you from home to work (sometimes a bit indirectly). We see wildlife of some sort (eagles, herons, osprey, geese/ducks, deer, beaver, groundhogs, turtles etc.) every day.

For doing errands in the suburbs themselves, the problem is the ultra-wide arterial roads, which are difficult (and sometimes flat out unsafe) to cross or navigate, and are alternatively high-speed and congested, often with traffic making crazy lane changes to get from strip to strip.

So you just have to do some research and find alternate routes. We can get most of everything we need in smaller shops off the main roads. That’s partly why some of the long-forgotten mini-shopping centers in our area are having a renaissance (REI/MOMS in North College Park, Roosevelt Center in Greenbelt). You can get there easily and pleasantly by bike, foot, or car.

At this point, I can’t imagine piling into a car and going to a huge mall or big box place with those ridiculous hot (or freezing cold) oversized parking lots. I’ll save the gas and buy locally, thanks!

[Arlingtonrider]

The ability to find suggested bike route directions easily using google maps (by clicking on the bike icon) has also made it easier to use bikes to get around. In addition, Arlington and DC offer very helpful bike maps.

[Mikey]

I forgot to mention, my family and I take what we call a “Car-free Vacation” each year around labor day. My wife and I pull two trailers and a bike seat on our two bikes to tow our 3 kids, blankets, pillows, food, clothes, and toys from our house in Fairfax, down to the C&O canal in Georgetown, and then out the canal to lockhouse 6. We spend the night there, spend a day biking around the city, and then bike back to Fairfax the following day. We have done it 2 years in a row and have scheduled the lockhouse again this year for our third annual trip.

Mike Essig

[Dirt]

@Arlingtonrider 18496 wrote:

The ability to find suggested bike route directions easily using google maps (by clicking on the bike icon) has also made it easier to use bikes to get around. In addition, Arlington and DC offer very helpful bike maps.

I’m really impressed with the bike maps available from most of the local municipalities. Arlington definitely leads the way. DC, Fairfax, Alexandria and many of the Maryland Suburbs are great too.

[Greenbelt]

College Park bike coalition did a great map of our area a while back (this is the low-res version, still a big PDF): http://ohbike.org/cpabc/map/041206.pdf

It’s available for free in hard copy at local shops.

[KLizotte]

I’d lived in the area for about 10 years but was a summer weekend cyclist only that stuck mostly to the Mt. Vernon Trail (MVT). That changed when Capital Bikeshare began (I’d already seen similar schemes in Europe). I started bike commuting every day when Capital Bikeshare put in kiosks across the street from where I live and work (score!) but after a few months I decided to buy my own bike so as to better explore the area and have more flexibility. I now cycle almost every day and just bought another bike to add to my stable.

The deciding factors in turning me from a casual cyclist to a daily, evengelical cyclist are:

1) CaBi introducing me to city riding, that is, off trail. I figured if everyone else could ride in traffic safely, so could I. It helped me get over my fear and allowed me the flexibility of short trips without the hassle. I still use CaBi for short, one way trips. I also discovered that a bike does not have to be an uncomfortable, hunched over road bike that requires spandex.

2) The introduction of great area biking maps from BikeArlington, DDOT, etc. For the first time I was introduced to trails I never knew existed and could see the entire “network.” I still use them to plan trips. I wish I’d know about these trails years ago. It’s amazing how far and wide you can go by bike using the trails as the main trunk lines and veering off from them as needed on to side streets.

3) Social media has been incredibly helpful and fun. The WABA/BikeArlington forum has been a *fantastic* resource for technical and safety advice, advocacy, moral support, and making friends. There are also some amazing blogs out there for cyclists of every stripe. I have learned a lot from the folks on the forum. What other group can turn commuting into a fun, engaging pastime?

4) Improved cycling infrastructure, esp the 15th street cycletrack and the wider bike lanes that are going up (unfortunately not all bike lanes are well designed). I could give up my car completely if the suburbs and DC greatly improved cycling infrastructure to make it safe and easy to bike to every place I need to go. That said, I biked as many miles as I drove last year (approx 3,500 miles each); this year, I expect to bike more than drive.

5) Being fortunate enough to have shower facilities at work – critical for bike commuting during the warm weather months.

6) Wanting to incorporate more exercise into my lifestyle. I had just moved back from Europe where I did not own a car and took public transportation and walked everywhere. Back stateside, I was rapidly putting on weight due to a lack of walking and wanted to incorporate a more active lifestyle without sacrificing too much free time. Thus the idea of bike commuting was born (which rapidly turned into recreational and utilitarian biking as well).

7) Better and more varied bike accessories (e.g., lights that make it easy to ride at night, baskets/panniers that allow you to easily carry your stuff, etc). Back in the old days I only had a backpack and an itty bitty light.

Some of the unexpected benefits from biking that I did not anticipate when I bought my bike:

1) Errands suddenly become fun; more like adventures than just going shopping plus I get the health benefits. Same is true for commuting.

2) Becoming a tourist in my backyard. I have visited countless neighborhoods I never even knew existed before, have tried restaurants and cafes I would never consider driving to, frequent more local stores instead of going out of town to big box plazas, and go to events (like festivals) that I would have considered too much of a hassle to attend by car or metro. I also “see” more along the way than I would if I were travelling by car: wildlife especially, people, and the good, bad and the ugly in terms of architecture, litter, street maintenance, public art, etc.

3) Becoming more involved in local, civic affairs. I have a more vested interest in the community than I did before, esp since I’m not a homeowner and can pick up and move anywhere.

4) Meeting great, active, socially conscious people!!!!

In the short term I have not saved any money, esp since the federal government reimburses me if I take metro to commute (thus the government is saving money as a result of my bike commuting!) and I rarely drove to being with. I have also spent quite a bit up front for new bikes and equipment but I figure it’s pay now or pay later. Being a couch potato would cost me eventually plus it’s hard to put a price tag on having fun and being more engaged in your community.

[Author]

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