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One Less Car
Tales of an Auto-free Family
By Jonathon Allen
Shortly before my wife and I were married, we decided to sell our two cars and strike out into the world auto-free. At the time, the decision was based largely on an impulse for adventure and simple economics; selling our cars would not only save us hundreds of dollars in monthly insurance and auto payments, but also would allow us to double the duration and distance of our honeymoon.
It started out as a sort of experiment on two wheels. Now, six years and two kids later, we're still primarily a human-powered family with no approaching vehicle in sight. As a result, not only has the quality of our lives been vastly improved, but we've realized that we're doing our children and our community an immeasurable service every day.
Considering the amount of energy required to propel humans from point A to point B by car, especially at a rate of one per person, they are probably the most inefficient means of transportation civilization has yet devised. Though we account for less than 5 percent of the world's population, Americans consume a quarter of the world's oil – half of which is burned by internal combustion engines. When looked at through the smoggy haze of a rush-hour traffic jam, it seems that automobiles do more damage to the planet than the rest of industrial society combined.
On the flip side, bikes are one of the most energy-efficient transportation machines ever created. Propelling yourself across town every day not only drastically improves your fitness level, but also offers children and parents alike a connection with the environment that is unattainable using four-wheeled modes of transportation.
One thing people often forget when weighing their transportation options is that a few months of car payments can buy your family a veritable arsenal of hi-tech transportation gear. State-of-the-art bikes, skates, wagons, baby joggers and skis fill our garage at a fraction of the cost of a new SUV, and provide us with an endless source of fun and adventure. When our kids cruise down the street in their bike trailer, they do it in style, generating stares of envy from every car-seat-incarcerated kid in town.
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