Like both posters above, I didn’t have a car in college at all, so I had two options: walk or take the bus. I had a really large sturdy canvas bag that I’d put my groceries in, and I was careful with how much and what I bought-- I’d either have to walk home with it or carry it on the bus, so I didn’t tend to buy bulkier/heavier stuff with a longer shelf life. When living on campus, it was a long walk to the closest grocery stores, but it was along the bus line. When living off campus, my first apartment complex was behind the local Albertsons, and the one after that was a bus stop away from a Publix. I could walk to either relatively easily, but the first apartment was by far the most convenient arrangement-- I was a 20 minute walk from the center of campus on a lazy/tired day, the grocery store was on the way home, and most of my friends lived along the way home for about six months. I had friends with cars for the occasional “big dry goods” run, but I rarely needed to stock up on stuff to make use of it. The last year that I lived off campus without a car, my roommate and I would often do grocery shopping on the same day and take a cab back so that we didn’t have as much of a burden when getting the groceries back to the apartment. It worked out okay, and I was grateful that he was okay with paying for a cab on hot summer days when I was not inclined to walk.
If I were in a “no car” situation in my current residence, I would probably invest in a backpack that could hold more or a cargo trailer to attach to my bicycle. Some areas are a lot more bicycle-friendly than others around here, but overall, they’re not too terrible; we just have a lot of people who don’t think bicyclists exist or should exist.
My car crapped out one winter while in college, and I had a refrigerator that held 50° at best.
Powdered milk. Rice, pasta and dried beans. Highly processed meats that wouldn’t spoil at that temp. Durable fruit and veggies.
In an inner city, I would probably go a similar route, because I wouldn’t want meat juice all over my produce, or lots of broken eggs. Hence, the obesity issues in the food deserts.
In college there was a grocery store about a ten minute walk away, so that was no problem.
The worst was when I lived in a small town with no public transit or taxi service. The full grocery store was about a 40 minute walk from my house. So doable, but I really didn’t want to carry heavy bags that far. Luckily there was a decent farmers market close to my house. Every Saterday I would stock up on fruit and veggies and I could get most of the other stuff from a corner store. Once in a while when I needed something specific I would make the treck to the grocery store.
Having lived in German cities of pop. 15k, 500k and 85k in the last three decades, with a driving license but without owning a car, and shopping for 1 person, in about this order of frequency:
walking and carrying bags (and mineral water crates) by hand
bicycle side bags
bus/tram and carrying
collapsible pushcart
renting a car from my local car sharing club for an hour or two, for large shopping trips (e.g. when returning mineral water empties and stocking up with full bottles for the next months)
I’ve had several older relatives in my family end up carless.
Both of my grandmothers outlived their husbands and they both lived in small towns without major transportation infrastructure (you could get a bus ticket out of town to a larger town…but no bus for commuting around town.) They actually both had cars, but they were my grandfather’s vehicles and both of my grandmothers did not have driver’s licenses and had never driven in their lives (both lived into their 90s.)
The local supermarket was locally owned and the owner would have his employees deliver food to them on a regular basis. He didn’t charge for this but they would tip the delivery boy pretty well (typically a stock boy sent on the errand.) This market owner did this for several elderly customers in similar circumstances. This guy was a third generation owner of the store and some of these older people had been customers of his family for 50+ years. He could have probably made more money by charging a modest delivery fee but he never did.
That store is long gone now, so I imagine old people in that situation would need family members willing to do the shopping for them or willing to drive them.
Same way I get anywhere: I walk or ride my bike. I have to go once a week or so to get milk, anyway, so there’s never all that much, and it almost always fits in one of the big reusable bags I have. I either carry that, or sling it over one of the handlebars. For a really big shopping day (if I’m hosting a party, say), I might bring two bags, one over each handlebar.
No major public transportation here, and if you think you’re going to lug two bags of heavy perishables a few miles in the scorching sun - well, more power to you.
I borrow a vehicle, or I do without.
Often though, if I’m out and about with others I’ll ask to stop real quick at the store.
I spent several years using the bus when I didn’t have a car. In Anchorage, which has a terrible bus system, I’d just schedule it very carefully. I’d take a back pack so that I could put a lot of the groceries in the backpack. And I used those “green” bags, they’re a lot tougher and more comfortable to carry than plastic bags. I’d take a book with me to read while I was waiting for the return bus (most routes were at least 1 hour between buses). Since this was Alaska, I didn’t have to worry about the ice cream melting (at least for most of the year :D). I usually shopped a couple of times a week. A lot of times I would buy my non-fridge foods while out on a job, that way I could simply take them home with me on the bus after work and not have to wait at the store.
For large items, I either had friends give me a ride, or I used the field beast (my company’s field truck).
I have a car, but I typically do not use my car to buy groceries. I just walk down to the local supermarket almost every day and pick up what I need for that day’s dinner and the next day’s lunch. I’m used to shopping very frequently, so it’s not problem for me, and I enjoy it.
When I lived in the city and didn’t have a car I just walked and carried my groceries. I didn’t have a family and I can carry a lot though. They make these little fold up carts that wheel, I used to see girls and elderly people using them all the time.
There are two grocery stores and a convenience store within a couple blocks walk from my apartment. The key is to go a couple times a week and be choosy about what you carry back with you, spread out the heavy items so you’re not carrying a ton of heavy stuff together. I also live alone so I don’t have to buy a lot of stuff. Anything really heavy, get it delivered (e.g. when I bought my fridge and washer) or take a cab. Before I lived so close to stores, I did the same thing, spreading out my grocery trips, but I took the bus.