Chris Balish

The author didn't prove his "live well" thesis. Yes, you can manage in metropolitan areas without a car, but since several of his car-free solutions, such as subscribing to ZipCar or renting a car, cost money, I dispute that ditching a car saves money and maintains (or improves) quality of life, especially in suburban or rural areas.

He asserts that Greyhound and Amtrak are reasonable alternatives to using a personal car for transportation, so his research was lacking or he is badly misled. Five people can travel in an automobile, whether rented or owned, from BackofBeyond, South Dakota, to MiddleofNowhere, Arkansas, much less expensively than they could by buying five tickets on mass transit, and do so more reliably.

You have to be a skilled bicyclist to pedal in snow, with special tires. It's not the "no big deal" he suggests. He suggests using garbage bags as rain gear, which are incompatible with "living well."

I believe in more public transportation and less driving. I believe in biking more than driving. I believe that subsidizing roads but not rail is ridiculous. I also believe Balish didn't prove his point.… (mer)

Overall, this is a useful book in explaining how to live a car-free or "car-lite" life in the United States. It is well organized into sections, such as alternative modes of transport (bicycling, walking, motorcycling) and how-to guides (get to work, have a social life, use car-sharing). It is easy to read and peppered with anecdotes from people across the country.

Unfortunately, the author tends to downplay the difficulties of living car-free in the U.S. He does not address the fact that in some cities it is much, much easier to live without a car, and in others it is almost — if not entirely — impossible. I wish he noted that some of his alternatives are not options for everyone. For example, bicycling can be very dangerous (after being hit by a car while riding my bike, I can’t imagine going into traffic again) or downright impossible for someone with a physical disability. Not only does he seem to be coming from a middle/upper-class perspective, he also fails address what people outside an urban/suburban environment might do.

I also disliked his assumption that everyone already drives and is only now considering switching to a car-free life. It would be nice if his book assumed that at least a few of his readers do not (or cannot) drive and do not have a car to begin with.

Despite these problems, the book is a handy guide for anyone who lives a middle-class existence in an urban environment in the U.S. Straightforward, well organized, and easy to read, the book might give you some useful tips you hadn’t considered before, or it just might be the motivation to get rid of your car, which is what the author intends.… (mer)

O. K., true confessions, I'm "car lite." But we ride bicycles everywhere we go locally when it's not icy on the roads. This is a good book, and the basic thrust of it is, "you'll save money by ditching your car!" To which your response is, "But . . . but . . . but . . ." to which the author's response is, "well, this is what you do in that situation." So his style is more practical and less theoretical than "Divorce Your Car" (which is also good). The emphasis is on how you can go car-free, now, rather than why we need better mass transit or more bicycle lanes. Methods of getting around include buses, bicycles, carpooling, walking, renting a car, getting rides from other people; the author even counts motorcycles and scooters as good enough to qualify as "car free." I like it that he tackles the really tough situations where you think you just have to have a car (like dating, which gets quite a bit of space). Going car-free really is more of a social challenge than a physical challenge. It's a long story why we're not car-free completely. (I used to have a pretty good excuse: impossible to get my stand-up bass to gigs without our Honda Hatchback.) I actually lived without a car for over a decade. But this is a good book to give you an overview of the issues.… (mer)