I’m guest-posting today on Jacquelin Cangro’s blog about my family’s decision to go car-free.
My post begins:
I met the Adkins family on a crisp September day a couple of years ago. I leaned my bike on the large bike rack they’d installed where their driveway used to be. Paul showed me around their yard, pointing out beehives, fruit trees, and rows of peppers and tomatoes ripening in their sprawling raised bed gardens. Nearby a flock of Araucana hens squawked and pecked in a run. The family’s Labrador Josie followed behind us wagging her tail as Paul unlocked the shed to show me the family’s 22 bikes and various bike trailers.
Paul and his wife Monica have four kids; their youngest daughter has Down’s Syndrome. When I met them, they’d been living intentionally car-free for a year and a half. Paul is a local bike advocate, so perhaps it’s not surprising that they decided to sell their Toyota Previa minivan. But living without a privatized motorized vehicle is incredibly rare where I live in Eugene, Oregon, as it is in most parts of the United States. Only 8.7 percent of American households have no vehicle, and that includes the young and elderly.
I was visiting the Adkins that day to interview them for an article about local families choosing a car-free lifestyle. Tellingly, I couldn’t find a single other family to interview.
You can read the rest of the post here.
Thanks for this well written post. Being legally blind, I don’t drive, but we do own a small truck that my husband drives. I do a lot of walking and have tried to talk him into getting rid of the truck altogether. So far, it hasn’t happened. I admit that I do have some concerns about whether it’s a viable option for us. We live in a rural area with lots of hills. Plus we’re middle aged and have our share of health issues. What would you recommend for people like us? (In my mind, I’m considering a bike with a motorized assist when we need it. It’d sure help out on hills!)
Hi Lisa, I’ve never ridden a bike with a motorized assist, but I have a couple of friends who have them. They definitely help out on the hills!
Wow, your story is inspirational. I wish that my situation would allow me to be car free. I have lupus and fibromyalgia, which causes pain issues. I’ve not rode a bike in years because of my illnesses. I have started to walk around the block occcasionally sneaking over to the grave yard, which has hills and valleys. I do have to stop several times for breaks , but the block is miles to me. I do use a w/c on my really bad days, but I’m trying to exercise.
Thanks again, Abby, for writing this eye-opening post. I think it has started a great conversation and will get people thinking that there are other options.