I am the section editor of the experiments section and am always on the hunt for people who are trying new things and making an effort to live sustainably, wisely, or just differently.

You can check out our mag at geezmagazine.org.

Please email me at editor@geezmagazine.org if this is something you would like to do.

New day, new way. But, I long for the new auto, plug-in, hybrid, whatever saves the most fuel. Now I’m an evangelist for high speed trains to help get more cars off the road.

You make some good points in your comment. I hadn’t heard about WeCar but we have a fairly plentiful selection of ZipCar spots, including one just down the street from me which I’ll try out sometime. ZipCar also includes gas and insurance but there’s a yearly fee of $50 when you do their occasional driving plan. We’ll see. Like you said, D.C. is pretty convenient to get around without a car (even less of a hassle sometimes considering traffic, parking, etc.).

I happen to live in a city where you can’t be w/o a car because the public transportation isn’t good, St. Louis. I have lived in both New York and Chicago with and without cars in my life and know how to get by w/o one, but this is the first time I’ve lived in a place w/o a car that is trying to improve their public transportation and not quite cutting it. And this is exactly why it’s so difficult to get cars off the road. We didn’t build our infrastructure largely w/o cars in mind with the exception of the cities that you have mentioned.

One alternative is the WeCar and in some cities it’s the ZipCar. I use it and have found it invaluable and how I’ve also come to know the Prius. Several are parked around the downtown St. Louis area in very convenient spots. I can go online and schedule a time I want to pick up the one that is most convenient and available to me for $10/hr. That includes gas and insurance. If I keep it for a 24 hour period I only pay $60.00. It’s a deal.

However, I have a daughter whose car I will borrow for other things. Bottom line as far as I am concerned? Yes, you can live w/o a car with even deficient public transportation today with such amenities as the WeCar but not for very long. I say I’ll have another car by next year.

At least it will be one of the hybrids. And my 2.5 years of no car? Well I can write about it, say I’ve done it. I can also attend town hall meetings and tell them how to improve their public transportation so more people will use it; I can go on my own blog and tell the world why people won’t be giving up their cars anytime soon….not unless the rest of the world wakes up and joins in on the experiment and DEMANDS public transportation become better.

Other alternatives are the high speed trains Obama has talked about. Now that I’ve spent the time I have sans car and taking the train up to Chicago instead of driving this plan makes great sense and many would use it. I do see this a being part of the future we must learn to create. As well, I see urban centers becoming hotbeds of activity again especially if there is public transportation that can support mobility.

Meantime, good luck. Washington D.C. is not such a bad place to go carless. Many options….