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Just because the average bike commuter is white and wealthy doesn't mean that it's IMPOSSIBLE for anyone but the 1% to bike, at least a little. In my 'hood, which you would probably say is "too dangerous" for your family, almost every kid has a bike, and I see a number of adults biking around as well. Bikes don't have to be expensive, and a number of other people have pointed out that it's possible for you to at least bike to the Metro. Whether you choose to do this (get your kids bikes and bike to the Metro) is your own perspective. I will say it because others haven't (though there's been a bit of an implication), if you live in a more transit-accessible location (both Metro and other methods like biking and walking), you can afford more house and better neighborhoods. Even my meager, owned-my-car-outright, lived-in-a-neighborhood-where-I-didn't-drive-much, single-person expenses for owning a car were well over $2000/year. Add a larger car and more miles and parking at the Metro and those costs go up exponentially. Let's say $5K/year to own/operate a car. That's over $415/month in extra housing costs, $250 if you continued to own a car but didn't drive it much (based on my experience, and I imagine that your insurance rates are lower than mine were since I was paying city insurance rates).

But why bicker about that...why not demand that your locality provide better non-car transportation options? If your local city streets connected better, the more-direct route to the Metro would be just a smidge over .5 miles (which is shorter than my walk to the Metro, BTW). Even at 2.1 miles, that's totally do-able on a bike with the right infrastructure. And with good bus lines, you would have yet another option to get to the Metro without a car. No one here is saying you have to live a fully bike-able distance to work (I certainly don't live a walk- or bike-able distance to work, especially in bad weather), but if you want the option of a less car-dependent lifestyle in the 'burbs, you're going to have to demand it. It's a shame that someone who lives so close to a Metro doesn't feel they can do most of their tasks without a car, but I can't do anything about that because it's YOUR city and YOUR neighborhood. If you want those amenities, DEMAND THEM. It's up to you to make your city what you want it to be, and a damn shame that someone can live so close to public transit and still feel like they're dependent on a car to get around. You'll get plenty of support here from people who want to make what should be a short walk- or bike-able commute to the Metro possible (and if things were planned right, to stores and other amenities near the Metro), but not a lot of sympathy if you just bemoan how you HAVE to drive everywhere.

by Ms. D on Dec 27, 2011 8:15 pm • link • report