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EUC, public transportation, and Uber only?


LanghamP

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After getting my umtenth parking ticket, and now having to pay my yearly property tax on my POS Kia, I'm seriously considering forgoing my car due to the tremendous cost and somewhat inconvenience of parking. Also the sheer misery of waiting in traffic (self-driving cars can't get here soon enough), and the small but significant percentage of really bad drivers (again, self-driving cars).

Anyone here in the USA go to a carlesss existence? As in, just a reliance on EUCs, Uber, and public transportation?

My concern is trading one set of problems for another set of unforseen problems.

Thoughts?

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I have been living in San Francisco with no other transportation other than my EUCs. For just commuting it is pretty great. It is pretty limiting when shopping or other situations where you may need to transport big and/or heavy objects. Fortunately, amazon and other places will ship most large heavy things to my door but it is a limitation to be aware of. Public transportation here is good enough to get me around if I didn't feel like riding my EUCs.

I'd say the biggest issue is how willing you are to ride in unpleasant weather and how often those conditions occur where you live. The second biggest issue is how often you might want to carry around more than will fit in a large backpack. The other issue is using an EUC full-time as transportation will expose you to some risk of meeting some of those crazy drivers while being fairly vulnerable. It is a small risk but if you are out in traffic every day you get to roll the dice for that small chance many times over the years.

If the city you live in has a good-enough public transportation network it is definitely possible but it is not for everyone.

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Jillions of New Yorkers have no automobile, and probably tens, if not dozens, in St Louis too.  Best way to put a toe in the waters is to lend the Kia to an irresponsible cousin for a couple of weeks, or accidentally drop the key down the sink grinder.  A grocery that delivers can be a plus. 

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I am not sure that StL has the greatest public transportation, and it must be rough riding below 30°F. I live in L.A. and the bike lanes are sporatic at best. Lots of times I ride on side streets or sidewalks if there are no bike lanes. There are plenty of river trails, and using the EUC as a last mile in conjunction with Public transpo is now a legal and encouraged option.

I still need a car for grocery shopping and hardware store items larger or heavier than can fit in my backpack. Is Parking in STL that costly that parking tickets are cheaper? I also heard that if you get one in Clayton, Mo. you can drop off something like $1 in the fine envelope within an hour of receiving it at a dropbox in city hall. Not sure if they still do that.

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I've gone a few years without a car, living in various places on the outskirts of Seattle, WA. My commute to work has been about 2 - 4 miles, and grocery shopping is a 1+ mile round trip. For occasional trips to the mountains, zipcar works. Used sparingly, Lyft has been affordable. And Amazon delivers everything (I got my front door barricaded with boxes when they shipped me a sofa).

Weather, however, can be a deal-breaker. Rain isn't a big issue, but ice is. This winter, I spent half a month commuting by bus because of icy road conditions (although everywhere around Seattle has issues dealing with snow and ice).

Riding with the EUC on a bus, while manageable, isn't ideal. And I have no idea what to do with an EUC if I have to stand in a packed bus.

Not having a car also means I read a lot more (on the bus - though maybe I'll get swag points for reading while on the EUC).

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Car free is a dream for me. Less expense. More environmentally friendly. Reduced stress of other shitbag drivers annoying me. Alas my city has a poor network of bike paths, is highly spread out, and has no option of hourly car rental like ZipCar. It makes it a bit impossible.

The EUC has been a god send in the hot summer but has really not extended my car free mobility beyond what my bike did. If you wanted to ride EUC's where possible but retain the ability to move larger goods then a folding bike with a trailer would help. I have a Radical Designs Chubby trailer for my Brompton and it routinely carries over 50lb of shopping. Swap the bag out for a cargo deck and I strap my dog's crate to it when I take her to work or the park. It would make car free much more viable than just an EUC alone.

Not my specific bike or trailer but you get the idea.

img_0843q.jpg

Incidentally, Radical Design make a huge range of walking trailers. I've wondered if one could work with an EUC. My bike trailer came with a handle you can swap in place of the hitch and the wheels can move to the rear of the frame. It isn't a proper walking trailer but I want to see if I could move stuff with the EUC and a hand pulled trailer.

https://www.radicaldesign.com/cyclone-iv-chubby.html

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I truly hate automobile-centric (sub-)urban planning, and can't wait for its demise. I've been car-less for over two years. I have been lucky enough to live in an area with a fantastic network of paved trails, and lots of shopping nearby. For longer jaunts I use public transportation or Uber/Lyft. Car rentals are generally inexpensive though seldom needed, and I'm treated like a celebrity when I roll up to their door.

Assuming a car payment of $250/month, fuel at $50-75, insurance also near $50-75, depreciation at $200, and maintenance at $500-1000/year, my humble Ninebot is a fantastic replacement 10 months out of the year. 

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I dont see the Car and EUC as a binary choice. I Love Cars! I love cars as much as I love EUCs. I am a micro car and Subaru buff and I see no reason why we cant all share the road. We need to move parking off the roads for cars and make the parking a civic responsibility for local governments and their grey or brown space. The extra space from removing roadside parking or only allowing it to be on one side of the street and the other side can be a class 1 bike lane.

If we can remove enough cars from the road for short trips, the roads will be clearer for all, trucks, cars, bikes, EUCs, skateboards, scooters. I have removed 5000 miles of driving from my cars last year. The US DOT did studies on transportation. People drive the same amount of miles each year unconsciously aware of the goal they will hit is the same as the year before. Adding a car or bike or EUC or rapid transit does not increase this mileage, it replaces it. 

So by using our EUCs for transportation we are already solving the problem. We just need more of us. So lets show the way!:roflmao:

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I do not have a car either.

I used to have a bike, but it stood idle in the garage from the moment I got my first EUC. When my son needed a bike, I gave him mine. As a result I only have my EUC.

In case of slippery conditions (snow) I use public transport (commute).

Last month, after my wheel broke down, i had to do without it for 4 weeks. So I used public transport for those 4 weeks. Three things bugged me:

1) Public transport costs a lot of money.
2) Public transport costs a lot of time.
3) Public transport gets you from A to B, but the in between is gone. This became especialy obvious in doing the groceries. On me EUC, i regularly stopped at the store along the way for fresh goods, and direct needs. Often I did not need to do shopping at all in the weekends. 

The solution to this all? Get a working reserve EUC :) 

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Having a good backpack and the ability to balance with a large load is definitely important to using an EUC for errands. I've been using mine for all sorts of shopping and short trips, plus getting to and from public transportation. 

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