Uneasy Rhetoric

I’ve seen no end of “how to save gas” lists, and they all start from the same premise: that you’re still going to drive the same number of miles. The lists contain advice that ranges from smart - keep your car tuned up and your tires inflated, to stupid - wash your car.

Treehugger has a better top 10 list. Of the ten items on the list, four and a half are about driving less or not driving at all (I gave the one about carpooling half a point).

10. Aspire to carlessness

Not everyone is going to be able to do it, at least not cold carkey. It will probably entail a shift in thinking and some time, but living carfree might be more within reach than you think. Living closer to work and school is a big part of it. Walking, biking, public transport, car sharing, car borrowing, and teleconferencing are a strong arsenal of tools to help reduce the need for a car. Give it some thought.

For most of us, carlessness is a dream, but choosing to do things without a car doesn’t have to be. I have effectively lived without a car for several months at a time, in one case I had a dead battery and no one ever bothered to complain about my beat up pickup parked in front of their house. In another, my mechanic had my car for a series of two to four week periods. It can be done.