You can choose to be car-centric in America, for sure. But it’s also completely possible to choose a life that is sustainable without a car, though like everything else it will involve some trade-offs. If you move to that house down a ten-mile freeway with no neighbors, it’s nobody’s fault but your own if you don’t do a risk assessment.
Sometimes you have to do stuff that sucks. I’m not sure what else you expect out of life. What do people do when they get divorced and can no longer pay rent? What do people do when their house gets infested and the fumigators need a week to work? There is no magic fairy who saves people from bad situations. Smart people build up reserves to cover unexpected expense, and even more importantly smart people invest in their social networks, as having close friends or family will get you through a lot of scrapes.
I get my groceries delivered every week via Peapod, though Safeway also offers their own service. Barring that, you can surely find someone on Craig’s List who will drop off your groceries for a few bucks.
Dangerously hot? I was mainly talking about sweat. I’m originally from south Texas, lived in Houston for a couple of decades. If I had to bike or walk up Telephone Road even 5 miles to work in the morning, I would be sweaty and smelly. I know. I’VE DONE IT. For some jobs, like the one I had at that time, who cares? But if in an office or on the sales floor it could make a difference. And then the afternoon walk home would be in quite a bit more heat.
Likewise here in the OKC. It’s already been 90 to 95 here for some weeks. Late July to Aug will bring the triple digit days. During that time of year, waking up to 80 or higher is common. That will make a person sweat. So, dangerous or not, heat is going to be a factor for some people.
My wife and I regularly walk to the grocery store just down the road from us. Just at a one mile round trip. If that store wasn’t there, it would be 2.5 miles one way to the next, 7 miles to the one we prefer. (Yes, I am an odometer junkie, sue me) So, that makes a 5 mile or 14 mile round trip. Doable? Yeah, if you don’t mind the lack of sidewalks. I dropped my car off at a repair shop near me (less than 4 miles) and walked home, then walked back to pick up the car. I was surprised how difficult the journey was. Crossing one bridge was very trying. I had about 2 ft of space on the side, with four lanes of traffic (2 each way) driving past at 40mph. Mostly I walked thru some neighbourhoods with lots of nice trees, but to cross the “river” I had to take the bridge on the major thoroughfare.
I don’t really see any need for argument here, tho. Several anecdotal evidence posts show me that YMMV. Sometimes by quite a bit.
I don’t think the exclamation point and accusation of generalization are warranted–I was very intentional in making sure to signal that “I am not sure but I don’t think…”
I’m glad to hear you know of some such stores, but would you agree with me that this is by far (very very far) the exception rather than the rule?
If Tamex could provide a cite that even 1% of people in the US have access to such a service, I’d be stunned. So, got any stats about how common it is to have delivery service available, Tamex?
Well, Peapod covers Chicago, Milwaukee, Southeast Wisconsin, Indianapolis, South New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Philly, Rhode Island, New Jersey, New York, Maryland, DC, Virginia, Safeway covers California, Oregon, Washington, Maryland and Virginia. I’m sure there are other regional companies as well. Just doing a quick spot check, I see services in, say, Atlanta and Austin. And that’s not even getting in to CSAs.
The Twin Cities have a grocery store (Coborn’s) that delivers, as well as a delivery service (Gopher Grocery). So it’s usually something you have to live in a city to get, but it’s totally available in the US.
Good luck with that if you live at my house. We are ten miles from the nearest convenience store, 13 moles from the nearest grocery store and 16 miles to the nearest pharmacy. Could you walk or bike to get what you need, yeah I suppose. But good luck dragging home more than a couple of small items. (and that’s the way we like it)
In addition to Peapod and Gopher Grocery, there’s also FreshDirect in the New York metropolitan area, Pink Dot in Southern California, AmazonFresh in the Seattle and Los Angeles areas and Safeway on the West Coast. Stunned yet?
Well, the OP asked how people eat, and generally you can time grocery store visits for when the weather is less oppressive. It does take more planning, however. I do think that work is the sticking point for a lot of people: you can’t be flexible about the times, and you have to be presentable when you get there (rain is as big a problem as heat, there, depending on where you live).
But there IS a grocery store there, just a mile away. You DID walk to go get your car. It just sucked. Saying “Yes, we can walk and get food, but if we couldn’t, we couldn’t” doesn’t make a lot of sense.
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I don’t really see any need for argument here, tho. Several anecdotal evidence posts show me that YMMV. Sometimes by quite a bit.
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I agree. My point is merely that while the set of people who can’t go anywhere or do anything without a car certainly exists, there is also a set of people who probably could do a lot more than they realize. It’s not my place or my concern to worry about which individuals are in which set. I don’t care. I do know that I have found my own neighborhood to be a lot more walkable than I ever thought it was, and that discovering that changed my life. I also know that it’s really important to me that my son grow up thinking of anything within two miles as being in “easy walking distance” because I think that paradigm makes a person more free and more healthy.
A lot of not-knowing-how-the-other-half-lives going on in this thread.
For folks on the lower end of the wage spectrum, solutions like “move to a better part of town” aren’t practicable. An occupational licenses may cost a thousand dollars. Bus stops are few and far between, and buses are unreliable: getting somewhere on time means scheduling three hours for a thirty minute drive. If you’ve got a second job, or kids, that’s not going to work. Bicycles are great - so long as it’s not July in Texas, or December in Minnesota. And it’s not raining, or snowing, and you’re physically fit.
Man, do I feel lucky being a block away from the gas station/convenience store. If I ever was home bound for any reason and couldn’t drive I know I wouldn’t starve, though my healthy options would be few, that is for sure.
And as for using public transport, I wouldn’t rely on Memphis (PDF) buses to be of any real help.
Through the use of cabs, through the willingness and availability of friends and family to drive you to the store and to drop off food and through the illegal operation of your automobile. (that’s how it worked out for me)
I was in this scenario for 5 years and knew someone else who was in this scenario for 5 years as well. For most of that time I simply got rides from people and paid them (70 dollars to and from work at one point, in fact). Luckly I had a decent job and could do this. Most people have to rely on a bus or other forms of rides.
What a previous poster said about it quickly spiraling out of control is true. The person I knew who had 5 years of suspension was because he started with a year, got caught, got 2 years, got caught, 3 years… etc.
Also, you can get the restricted permits or work permits depending on your circumstances. If you do odd jobs (like a contractor) you are pretty much allowed to drive anywhere at any time as long as you look like your going to or from a job site.
When you apply for these permits they can be difficult to get and you are only allowed to apply every few months. So you have to decide whether to apply for a restricted permit and possibly be not driving for 9 more months guaranteed or to just apply for your license again. Getting the license is no easy matter and for me it required a lawyer with good connections in the state. Overall, it is a hell of a process and should teach anyone with half a brain never to get in the situation again.
I got jobs at places which didn’t do background checks so my summary suspension never appeared (my formal charge was dropped). This took care of that part. You do have to show a license when you go to a new job but I’d just show my state ID. Getting there proved difficult (60 miles one way) and I eventually just started driving.
Driving without a license is very nerve racking and you are always looking over your shoulder. You also pray no one hits you - I was never worried about hitting anyone else but them hitting me and having the law show up. An attorney informed me having a few thousand dollars can take care of nearly any of these situations on the spot, though.
The tricky part is getting a car to drive in the first place. In my situation I had to sell a friend my truck for $1 and drive it around while it was in his name. After I regained my license he just signed the title back.
I love their coverage claim for NH. Go to Peapod’s site and look at their delivery map: they deliver to exactly two towns on the coast of “Southern New Hampshire,” Portmouth and Newington, and nowhere else in the entire state.
See, the thing here is, why would someone move their house to a more walk-centric location when they expect to have their license reinstated within the year and their life can go on as normal? Some people may get enjoyment out of being able to walk the 2 miles to the local store and talk to everyone along the way, knowing they are self-sufficient and saving gas. That’s what they do. For a lot of other people, they don’t care, and they have no incentive to reinvent their lives because other people think it’s dumb that they live in a car-centric location. It really doesn’t matter that a lot of people could live in a reasonable walk-centric location. The fact is a lot of people don’t want to, or they’d already be there.
And when it comes down to it, a possible $1000 fine for driving on a suspended license is a whole lot cheaper than moving your household over a temporary life problem. This isn’t some 10-year boondoggle they have to plan around.
I do understand people underestimate their abilities, however.
There is a peapod service in my city, but I live in a city. The USA is huge, and there is also a whole lot of people living in places that are not cities (towns, hamlets, villages, so on). And the funny thing is, a city is more likely to be walk-friendly, thereby letting you avoid needing the service to begin with.
Yes and no. If an officer takes an interest in you for any reason (“Doesn’t that guy seem to be driving very cautiously?”), he can/will “run your plate”, which tells him some basic info off your registration. If he does that, he’s sure to notice that the owner of that car has his license suspended, and he will probably pull the car over to see if the owner is driving.
But all of that only happens if they wonder. They do not run every car they see, and if they have a list of “cars to look for” it is VERY short and consists of recently stolen cars and the like, not everyone who lives nearby and has a suspended license.
[del]If[/del] When you get caught, yes you might get arrested. Or rather, you will get arrested, but you might immediately get released on your own recognizance. Your car will be impounded if it cannot be left where you stopped it. You might need to post bail. And you are facing possible jail time. But yes, it is possible to drive for over a year without getting caught.
Although one does read stories in News of the Weird of folks who have their license suspended, then are observed by an officer leaving the court and immediately getting behind the wheel, leading to immediate arrest.
