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Alternatives to Cars?
H0NGK0NGPH00EY asks: "I hate cars. -- Why in the heck am I lugging a giant steel box with me everywhere I go, and paying through the nose to make it go? Well, the main reason is because there aren't any affordable, viable alternatives. Are there?"
"I drive about 18 miles to work, mostly pseudo-highway (60mph, two-lane
road with two stop lights on the way). Too far to bike, or I would--during the summer months, at least. I would get a motorcycle, but in my mind, it's only better than a car on one count, it's size. It still uses gasoline, is dirty, noisy, and has too many moving parts. Plus they don't protect me from the weather.
I've looked into small, commuter electric vehicles. And I've come up largely empty-handed. Here's what I have found:
Corbin Motors' 'Sparrow'
As you may know, Corbin produced about 300 of these beauties before one of their largest investors called in his money, and forced them into Chapter 7 bankruptcy. There were a number of technical problems, and due to their scarcity they're a bit hard to come by now. Besides, who would want to spend $7,000 + on an un-supported vehicle?
Cree's 'SAM'
Basically the same as the Sparrow, but not available yet. The company has been around since 1996(!), and has just recently basically 're-started.' Who knows when, if ever, they'll have a marketable product, especially in the USA.
Commuter Cars' 'Tango'
A local guy with a dream. And a dang fine looking vehicle. But alas, also not in production in any real way, and only currently available in a $85,000 kit. He talks about a $20,000 mass-marketed version, but I'll believe it when I see it...
Nevco's 'Gizmo'
Finally one that appears to actually be available. But at $12,000 it's a little steep for me, especially seating only one and only getting up to 45mph, with a 45 mile range.
So, has anyone here had any better luck?"
I've looked into small, commuter electric vehicles. And I've come up largely empty-handed. Here's what I have found:
Corbin Motors' 'Sparrow'
As you may know, Corbin produced about 300 of these beauties before one of their largest investors called in his money, and forced them into Chapter 7 bankruptcy. There were a number of technical problems, and due to their scarcity they're a bit hard to come by now. Besides, who would want to spend $7,000 + on an un-supported vehicle?
Cree's 'SAM'
Basically the same as the Sparrow, but not available yet. The company has been around since 1996(!), and has just recently basically 're-started.' Who knows when, if ever, they'll have a marketable product, especially in the USA.
Commuter Cars' 'Tango'
A local guy with a dream. And a dang fine looking vehicle. But alas, also not in production in any real way, and only currently available in a $85,000 kit. He talks about a $20,000 mass-marketed version, but I'll believe it when I see it...
Nevco's 'Gizmo'
Finally one that appears to actually be available. But at $12,000 it's a little steep for me, especially seating only one and only getting up to 45mph, with a 45 mile range.
So, has anyone here had any better luck?"
Unless you live in a major city in the US, there's no such thing as public transportation, and heck, in many large cities there isn't.
And, if you live in suburbia, it's just too far to ride a bike/walk.
You can buy an older, used car for $3,000-5,000. If you learn to work on them yourself, you can save money on repairs and maintainence.
Sure, it won't be the shiniest, newest thing on the road, but you won't be shelling out $500 a month for a car payment, plus half that for full coverage insurance.
I drive a motorcycle to work every day. A 250cc bike gets more than 50 miles per gallon and is nice and flexible. Also, the insurance costs about $100 a year. For protection from the weather you can have a cowl, windshield, and rain gear. Stop whining because it's not everything a car is and do something to make things better. Besides, it's fun!
"I hate cars. --
Then why, do you have as the #1 thing on your 'wish list' on your website, a Chrysler PT Cruiser?
I would highly recommend investigating your locality's municipal transit system. Eighteen miles is a bit of distance on the bus, but it might be worth it.
Barring that, ask them about carpool and/or vanpool prospects.
This sig no verb.
http://www.electricvehiclesnw.com/main/lite.htm
Mine is arriving on Monday.
This site has some pretty good info on electric-assisted bicycles, though it gets into a bit of silly rhetoric: Electric Bikes Northwest
From the submission:
Too far to bike, or I would--during the summer months, at least.
What about, "What are 'lack of reading comprehension' Alex?"
You probably shouldn't click this.
You can't have the best of both worlds.
... I'm too far off from dowtown and public transit blows.
:) The more people are interested in ditching their cars, the sooner cities will be forced to upgrade their public transit systems.
In the city I live in (Montreal), there is amazing public transportation. It would be a blatant waste of cash to park your car for $80/month downtown.. plus god knows how much in gas.
Obviously the response is "Waaaa waaaaa" in the city I live in
Well.. there people that pick the places they live in with transportation in mind. You can't expect society to bend to your will, because you need to subbornly live where you live.
If I suddently got a job opportunity in Austin Texas (I'm a software devel), the first thing I would be asking is how much are they paying me, and is there a good transit system to get me to work.. or a car pool.. or something.
You can kiss your $10 raise goodbye otherwise.
Basically I'm saying.. move to a better place, heck you might even make some money in real estate in the process
Love, Zaq
Finally one that appears to actually be available. But at $12,000 it's a little steep for me, especially seating only one and only getting up to 45mph, with a 45 mile range.
You want it to seat more than one, but you don't want a "giant steel box"? You want it to go more than 45 mph, but you don't want it to have "too many moving parts".
And 12,000 is too steep?
I guess that's why nobody is trying to make these cars. People like you may profess to want them - but aren't willing to compromise anything or pay a reasonable amount.
Let's not stir that bag of worms...
I think too often environmentalists overlook the absolute utility of having a car.
It's big, but its comfortable. It is easy to drive in all types of weather. (Try biking in snow.) It is available whenever you need it. It is actually pretty cheap if you want it to be. They are well-understood devices that are easy to maintain (you can rotate the tires, change the oil, and do all sorts of stuff yourself with just a few tools.) You can carry luggage or more passengers with ease.
People have wanted a car (abbreviations for carriage) ever since they got tired of riding horses. They've built first chariots and later buggies and finally enclosed carriages. When the motor was invented, they got rid of the messy and unhygienic horses and replaced it with the much cleaner and more powerful engine.
I think people tend to emphasize the downsides of owning a car without realizing the benefits. With a car, anywhere in the United States is accessible in hours. You are free to go anywhere you like whenever you like without having to ask for permission or wait for a bus to show up. You enjoy comfort in cold, hot, wet, or snowy weather.
What are the downsides for this freedom? A bit of pollution, a higher price tag than most other things you own, and the risk of getting into a collision.
As for me, until a better solution that is more versatile and useful comes out, I'll be holding on to my cars.
The radical sect of Islam would either see you dead or "reverted" to Islam.
The reason for using electric vehicles right now is not that they consume less energy, it's that they pollute less at the location where they are used. That's important because cities have real air quality problems, and that's a reason why so many cities use electric vehicles.
In the long term, electric or hydrogen powered vehicles also have the potential advantage that whatever CO2 is generated during energy production can be sequestered away, rather than being released into the atmosphere. Also, once you have switched to electric or hydrogen, you have a much wider choice of energy sources (e.g., solar becomes an option; it isn't if you burn gasoline).
Culturally, and geographically the US is quite different than most regions. Partly because we developed infastructure later than most of the developed world, and partly due to the high value we placed on individual freedom and risk. We prefer single family dwellings (freedom over our home and property), and our transportation habits (freedom to go wherever we wish. As a result the US has invested heavily in housing outside the cities (Phoenix is an extreme example of how our cities look. We have also developed signficant infastructure to support these individual travel modes. We have a huge and complex highway system while our rail infastructure is largely used to transport bulk cargo. Other than a few cities on the coasts our population density is not large enough for even heavily subsidized mass transportation to be feasible at the present time. Cities such as Boston, New York, and San Francisco (as well as Washington DC but for different reasons) did not have enough space to support the same individualized transit system and have developed a more global level of mass transit infacstructure. Washington simply spends gigantic sums of federal money on both. The rest of the country has been built around transportation by auto and it would take considerable change to reshape that infastructure. The change would have to occur on many levels (taxation and credits), investments in infastructure, culturally, and likely a few additonal ways. In short unless we hit $100/barrel of oil price don't expect it anytime soon.
Degaussing scares the bad magnetism out of the monitor and fills it with good karma.
As an avid cyclist, I can vouch for the fact that 18 miles is not too far for a bicycle. After a month of commuting by bike, you'll find that distance (36 miles per day round trip) is like nothing. Of course this depends on terrain -- if the roads are dangerous or extremely mountainous, or if the weather is bad, it might not be practical. But the distance isn't a problem. I can haul my sorry 40 year old butt along at over 20 MPH on flat terrain, and 16-17 MPH in the mountains -- indefinately. You can too.