One option to look into, especially for transporting small children, is a "bakfiets". It's a type of cargo bike with a large bucket in the front that can be used to haul kids and groceries. And you can find them now as ebikes to make it easier to haul more stuff. They're super common in the Netherlands for their high carrying capacity. You'll even see people moving furniture around with them!
LimitedWard
joined 1 year ago
you can’t drive the stock market to work
No, but you can ride a bike instead, which as the article demonstrates saves you a significant amount of money each year.
don’t buy an average car, by the one someone bought ten years ago for $5500.
That's not how markets work. If everyone started buying cheaper used cars there wouldn't be enough stock of said cheap cars. But even beyond that a $5500 car is going to cost you WAY more in the long run when you take into account the added recurring costs (e.g. higher maintenance).
At a reasonable (downright inexpensive) hourly rate of $50/hr and 11.000 miles at an average of 10mph vs 30mph in a car (including stoplights), she’s lost 700 hours or $35,000 just in lost time.
You are significantly overestimating the speed of cars and significantly underestimating the speed of ebikes. When accounting for traffic, stop lights, car accidents, etc., the average speed for car trips hovers around 18.5mph globally. Obviously that will vary significantly depending on your commute, but especially if you live in city bikes are at least on par in terms of speed. Most ebikes can reach speeds of 20mph+, and unlike cars they don't get stuck in traffic.
Of course that’s a silly way to look at it. But so is assuming we all have $28k just lying around to invest in the stock market.
Why is that silly? What's silly is the number of people choosing to put themselves into debt to own a car when in many cases they don't need one.
I'm not trying to sit here and claim everyone should dump their cars and ride bikes. My point is that people severely underestimate how much of a money pit they are. If you live in an urban environment, the benefits of car ownership simply don't outweigh the cons for the average commuter. The problem of course is that US cities have been designed to be actively hostile for active transportation, which is a major barrier for anyone looking to make the switch.
One thing these articles often neglect is the opportunity cost of car ownership vs bikes. The average used car in the US today is around $28k. Suppose you bought that car outright and sold it 10 years later. Assuming a reasonable depreciation of 15% per year, that car would sell for around $5.5k. That means (ignoring all other costs) your car cost you $22.5k. Now assume you took that $22.5k and invested it in the stock market. Assuming a reasonable interest rate of 8%, by the end of those 10 years your investment would more than double to $48.5k!
Cars are literally a mechanism to keep people poor.
Google pannier bags. They're basically totes that mount onto a bike rack. Some of them even have straps to convert them into a backpack for easy carrying.
In terms of distance, I think you might be surprised by how far and fast you can go with an ebike. A lot of people only think about their speed when on the highway, but most of your time on the road is likely spent at slower speeds navigating traffic in town. So what bikes may lack in speed, they make up for in maneuverability.
Until it's actually built, don't count on it. NIMBYs will fight tooth and nail every chance they get. Even after it's built there will be a constant barrage of unfounded complaints about how it hurts traffic flow and makes it more dangerous for drivers. Show up to your city council meetings and make sure to hold them accountable for their promises.
"But that would hurt businesses who rely on these vehicles to get work done!"
-idiots forgetting that no work will get done if our planet becomes uninhabitable
This is no laughing matter, and where are your stilts?!
Eh I'm not so sure I agree with that. Competent subway systems in rush hour tend to be completely full whereas cars in rush hour typically only have a single person inside. So I do believe it's an apples-to-apples comparison in the ways that actually matter.
Sorry to hear about their scoliosis
I'm shocked, I say. Absolutely stunned.
^/s^
What class are you taking? Cognitive Dissonance 101?
I don't really see an obvious solution here that avoids the need for a car, at least in the US (which I'm assuming you're in base on the kind of car you drive). If your goal is to ultimately ditch the car, depending on how frequent the trips are, you could potentially save money by renting a car just for the longer trips.