Surviving with a Single Car

In a couple of weeks, I celebrate two years as a full-time homemaker.  I love it; each day I am reassured that I am where I am supposed to be.  It also marks the anniversary of surviving as a family with just one car.  For the first 8 months living here in Ohio, Ben worked about 15 minutes from the house.  Once a week, and sometimes twice or more, I would take him to work so that I could have the car all day to shop, run errands, do my cleaning job, and whatever else suited my fancy.  It was a beautiful arrangement.  Then, in January 2009, he was laid off and his current job is now 35 minutes away.  As you can imagine, this spelled doom to our delightful car-swapping arrangement.

Although it was hard in the beginning, a few of the following tips really helped me get around when I needed to do so.  I also discovered that I really didn't "need" a car as much as I thought I did.

1.  Carefully consider whether a trip is necessary or not. This one step helped me settle in my heart the issue of contentment.  Often, I really didn't need to go out; I just wanted to get out for some fresh air or change of scenery.  And believe me, I know this is sometimes necessary, but maybe not as often as I thought it was.  Oftentimes, I would go out just to do some window-shopping, but it was a rare occasion that I came home empty-handed, besides the gas that I spent getting where I wanted to go.

2.  Make mutually beneficial arrangements with a friend or neighbor.   I have a good friend who graciously picks me up every Tuesday.  I use her vehicle to get to a cleaning job down the road, and when I return to her house afterwards, I give her children piano lessons.  I don't know that the benefit is completely  even here, but the arrangement has advantages for both of us.  Other ideas could be watching someone's house or feeding their pets while they are on vacation in exchange for the use of their vehicle.  Perhaps you could perform a service for them, like ironing clothes or getting a car wash, in return for a couple of hours with their vehicle. 

3.  Plan your appointments and shopping trips for times when the car is available.   This is how I do my grocery shopping during the winter.  Generally, on Monday or Tuesday evening, after we finish supper, I drive to our local grocery store half a block away, and do all of the grocery shopping for the week.   If we need something that requires driving much more than that, then we try to save the errand for the weekend, when we are out and about together as a family.

4. Walk or use public transportation!  Granted, this is not applicable to everyone, but if you live relatively close to your grocery store, library, or post office, consider yourself extremely blessed!  I am blessed to have our grocery store, 2 banks, the library, post office, 2 gas stations, 2 drug stores, and 4 fast food restaurants within a mile or so of our home.  During the warm months, I try to walk every where I possibly can.  Even now that I am pregnant and have two children in tow, I find that it is still possible to get out.  I have a jogger stroller with a generous basket underneath for Grace and any groceries or baggage we may have, and Jerold and I walk.  My parents, who live in Chicago, use public transportation regularly.  Sure, you have to buy a fare, but that would often be the price of the gas you would use to get where you were going anyway!  And there's no car insurance or maintenance on your part with public transportation--another little frugal bonus!

5. Swallow your pride and ask for a ride from friends and family.  Even with the previous four considerations, there will still be times when you must have a car.  Now that I am expecting, doctor's visits must be scheduled.  Thankfully, my in-laws live 25 minutes away.  My mother-in-law enjoys staying at my house to spend time with Gracie while I run to my doctor's appointments.

At first, I hated the forced "imprisonment" in my own house.  But as is true with nearly everything in life, there is good in every situation when we look for it.  While your circumstances will no doubt be different than mine, there really are some positive aspects to one set of wheels.  First, we have saved significant amounts of money in gasoline and car maintenance costs.  Our grocery bill has dropped considerably now that I must plan ahead, make do with what I have, and prepare for my shopping trips.  I have also found that I have a  daily and weekly routine that I never had when a vehicle was always available.  I can honestly say that I am GLAD our family has just one car!

This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday and Frugal Friday Tips.