When Walking Makes More Sense

Often, when we think about cars, our minds wander to the first time we got a car and how excited we were. However, nowadays, that tune has changed. People's excitement over getting a new vehicle is somewhat dampened by the reality that owning a vehicle will, in fact, cause perhaps more of a burden than not owning a vehicle at all.

If the recent gas price spike is any indication of how this summer is going to be, then we are probably going to see a lot more people walking than we will driving. While driving has long been a favorite thing for many people to do (I.e "Let's go out for a ride around today!"), increasing numbers of people are seeing the practicality of opting to walk or ride a bike instead.

Where I live, the grocery store is exactly .3 miles away. What does this mean? This means that on a day when it is nice out and I don't have too many groceries to buy, it would probably make more sense to walk than to get in my car and start the engine (which in and of itself uses up energy/gas). Is it that people are afraid to exercise or are too lazy? Or, is it that we have become too accustomed to our personal vehicles? I think that it's probably a little from column 'a' and a little from column 'b'.

When it comes to driving anywhere, I am very particular about certain things. For instance, unless I know the person really well and semi-approve of their driving habits/style, I will almost always prefer to drive my vehicle just for sheer safety reasons. The bad thing about this is that it causes me to waste significantly more money in gasoline and maintenance expenses. Why, just today, I was inquiring about having my oil changed and tires rotated and balanced...$95 dollars! No doubt, that price doesn't even include the cost of labor and taxes.

Owning a car is much more expensive than it seems at the outset. People will typically spend upwards of $50,000 once all is said and done between maintenance, taxes, state taxes, license plate fees and of course- the actual price of the vehicle that you are paying each month. And while walking may not always seem to be the practical choice, could it be true that it would save us all a significant little chunk of money in the end? Think about it. If you didn't own a car and had to walk, ride a bike and/or take a bus everywhere, there is no doubt that you would manage (not to mention the fact that you'd probably be in better physical shape). Grocery shopping would have to be done with some extra care so that you wouldn't be overloading yourself with perishables and other bulky items. Additionally, if you had a baby or small children, it may make things more difficult as well. This is especially true for those who do not live in metropolitan areas such as New York City or San Francisco.