For eight months I lived without a car. I chose an apartment near the city center so that I could take advantage of the frequent and free inner city bus service we have here. I am near the railway station, too. But anyone who lives in a city other than our great public transport examples, say London, Tokyo, New York, Paris or Berlin, will understand my frustration with the problem of infrequent and unreliable public transport to places further afield. Grocery shopping is a pain when you have to lug it all back on the bus or train, and walk all those extra distances, too. In the end I succumbed and bought a small Toyota.
Now I still only use it for weekly shopping, weekends, and the odd job or appointment that is too short to warrant a slow bus ride. I take the bus to university and my husband walks or uses the free inner city bus to his work in the city.
My car itself is my compromise. I have to admit that I need the freedom that the car affords. I love to explore and I love to get in the car and go somewhere on the spur of the moment, which is something that is hard to do with public transport. At the same time, I am very conscious of the effects of even one more car on the road. I lived in Los Angeles for a few months, and saw that notorious smog first hand, and that is after the strict car emissions laws had been in place for a few years already. I looked into the best options, searching specifically for a car that used very little fuel, had efficient, CFC-free air-conditioning (you really do need it in Perth - winding down the windows does you no good when the wind is hot), and was manufactured efficiently. My choice was a Toyota Echo, but there are other very good small cars on the market. I chose the Toyota because I like the Japanese technology, but the small Fords, Hyundais, Holdens, Nissans, Hondas and so forth all have excellent fuel economy, and the better companies are continually researching new motors and bodies that reduce fuel consumption. Companies like Chrysler have been installing only CFC-free air-conditioner refrigerants for over five years now.
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