Living Car-Free in Mountain View

Just about to reach our one-year anniversary of living in beautiful Mountain View. And all of it without a car! Yes, it is possible to live in the USA without a car, although many people are astonished that we manage it. This is now our tenth year of living car-free; one year in the UK, six years in Australia and three in the USA.

A Car-Free and Carefree Life

So how do we do it? First and foremost, we pick a home in a walk-friendly neighborhood with good local transit connections. And then we walk! Or get the bus or train for further afield. If we want to go away for the weekend, we just hire a car occasionally. Yes, it does take longer to do the daily chores but we save time by getting our exercise naturally throughout the day. No need for trips to the gym to keep fit!

Here in Mountain View, we live just off Castro Street so we can shop, eat and make merry right here. My husband commutes to work on foot, Caltrain and shuttle bus to Santa Clara. It sounds complicated but much more relaxing than driving in the rush hour. I have an old-fashioned shopping trolley for trips to Ava’s, Nob Hill Foods, Wholefoods Market and the Sunday Farmer’s Market. And I’ve just bought an Electra bike at Bike Connection in Palo Alto so that I can get around faster and further.

Tips on Living Car-Free

What about you? Could you manage without a car? Of course, it may just not be practical for you if you live far from public transit or have a large family. But what about getting creative and reducing your reliance on that expensive, carbon-emitting vehicle. Here are some ideas for you to try out:

• Don’t take the car for trips of less than a mile – walk instead
• Get together with your neighbors and set-up car-pools for getting the kids to school or yourself to work
• Take the kids on bus trips and train trips – they will love it!
• Look into using the Caltrain or VTA buses and light rail for part or all of your daily commute to work
• Work from home when you can
• Shop online rather than driving to the shops
• Going out with friends – share the car when you can
• Explore your local area and find things to do that are close by
• Join Bay Area Bike Share or get on your own bike for short trips
• Join the Zip Car car-sharing scheme and sell your own car!   

Ditching that car will not only save you money but also reduce your carbon emissions too. Each person saves over 2 tons of carbon emissions and about $6,000 every year by going car-free.  

Here’s to foot-power!