I'm considering selling my truck and living without, but I'm nervous about following through .. advice?

Question

I'm a student at a college and live about 2 miles from the campus, where I also work. I do have a bike, but am not very athletic and don't want to bike to school and work in bad weather.

I know the pros are saving a ton of money (no maintenance, no gas, no inspections, no taxes ...) and doing great things for my health. Also, not owning a car can only do good things for the environment.

But the inconveniences feel like they outweigh the pros. Like, when I go grocery shopping, or need to run several errands on my days off, or just want to go visit friends or go out to the movies or something, biking will take longer, the weather may be awful, and it may be hard to carry everything I would need on a backpack.

What advice do you have for me? Do you bike or walk instead of drive? What can I do to solve some of the problems I foresee?

Thank you!

Answer 1

Try living without your truck for a week and see how it feels.

If it works out well, you can sell your truck with full confidence that you do not need it.  If it does not, you still have your truck and you have lost nothing.  

You'll see that our cities, our culture, and your lifestyle are not set up for being a bicycle rider.

If you are truly committed to getting rid of your vehicle you may have to move closer to campus, find a new grocery store, and forgo your long-distance visits.

Answer 2

I thought about it, tried it, couldn't do it.

I commute by foot/train every day. No problem there. But you're absolutely right. It's the errands that you can't do without a car.

We've got a great public transportation system here, but unless I only buy a couple day's worth of groceries at a time taking it on the bus would be impossible. That, and visiting family/friends, late night trips after the T has stopped, and those times you just need to get out of the city make a car a must. So I end up paying $300/mo for a car I drive maybe 250 miles a month. I considered ZipCar, but it's the once or twice a month overnighters to see family that wouldn't work there. The math seems to show a combination of ZipCar and one or two overnight car rentals would price out about the same, but I'd rather have the convenience of my own car.

Give it a shot. Keep your truck for now but pretend it's not there. See if you can live without it.

One question, is your truck paid off? If it is, why not just keep it? Let it sit. You won't have to pay anything but insurance until you need it. I sometimes don't move my car for weeks!

Answer 3

I think what you should do and im not sure on the kind a truck you have but if you dont need your truck to haul stuff go out and buy a small import car that you can drive into the ground and you can also still walk when you want to just because you have a vehicle doesnt always mean you have to use it.