THE DILEMMA OF THE DAY
Hello Dear Reader. Tamara here.
I need your help. I have a dilemma. The answer to my dilemma is patently obvious yet I bury my head in the sand with my cute flamingo butt waggling in the petrol scented wind.
Do I get rid of my car?
I should get rid of my car.
I do not want to get rid of my car.
I will get rid of my car. Someday. Just not right now.
do it, the climate
We are in a climate emergency. At this very moment. In the here and now. Our current present. We are knowingly hurtling towards the cliff edge and rather than do an emergency stop, we turn up the radio and tell ourselves the cliff is an illusion.
According to the IPCC report published last year, we have until 2030 to limit climate change. That is 11 years to do some serious damage limitation. Global warming must be limited to a more manageable 1.5-degree increase and carbon dioxide emissions must be significantly cut. To do this requires a significant and dramatic change from government, corporations and citizens.
I am a citizen. I have a car that contributes to carbon dioxide emissions. I should get rid of my car. I don’t want to get rid of my car.
do it, #letpompeybreathe
Portsmouth is an island. A beautiful, vibrant traffic-crammed island with limited parking. I can walk, get the bus (though I baulk at paying almost a fiver just to get into town). I live near the train station. I can get the coach. Why am I contributing to Portsmouth’s poor air quality, traffic and parking problems? I don’t need a car. I am able-bodied and don’t have children. I don’t need a car to commute to work or get around.
I should get rid of my car. I don’t want to get rid of my car.
don’t do it, mental health
I have made no secret of the fact that I have clinical depression. I have been managing it and some days I even forget I have it. But in the early days of my depression and subsequent relapses, I would retreat into my bed and struggled to leave the house, sometimes for days and weeks at a time. That’s when the car became my lifeline and my freedom. I would drive to Sainsbury’s and have some chips and do some shopping and come home feeling like at least I had achieved something. I would agree to go out and do stuff, but only if my partner drove us. But that was then and this is now.
I should get rid of my car. I don’t want to get rid of my car.
don’t do it, Green-ish
My car is a hybrid. And maybe one day, I could afford to get an electric car. Also, I recycle loads and try to live an eco life. Next year, I’m even giving up flying for a year. So that’s not so bad, right? Except the car tyres still release plastic into the environment and the electric is produced from the burning of fossil fuels. And the argument still stands, living in Portsmouth, I don’t need a car.
I should get rid of my car. I don’t want to get rid of my car.
will I do it?
In my defence, I have been practising not having a car and have been using it much less. Choosing to cycle even in the rain (ergh) and to take the bus and train when I would have otherwise driven.I won’t lie, I find it expensive and it does heighten my anxiety. Though to be fair, parking in Pompey heightens my anxiety too! I worry that by getting rid of my car, I will become house-bound and isolated when I next have a depressive relapse. And there is the universal fact of convenience, sometimes it’s just quicker and easier to drive with the added bonus of not getting wet!
I should get rid of my car. I don’t want to get rid of my car.
In an ideal rosy cartoon-stylie world, in writing of this post, having faced my fears, I will choose to live a bigger life and get rid of my god-damned car.
Maybe soon. But not yet.
But if not now, then when?
Disclaimer: If you are a vehicle owner/ driver, this is not a judgement or attack on you and your reasons for owning a car. This is my story. Having said that, if I get rid of my car, will you get rid of yours?
Eric de Greef says:
Hi Tamara, thank you for sharing your dilemma. And I have a suggestion. Why not share a car with a group of friends who also want to get rid of their car but not just yet. If you share your car between a group of friends you will reduce the number of cars parked on the road, and make yourself and your friends less dependent on a car. We haven’t had a car for about 10 years now, our friends have added us to their car insurance so we can borrow it, and other times we hire one. We do our weekly shop online. And for the rest we cycle everywhere in town and take the train for longer journeys.
September 27, 2019 — 1:40 pm
Tamara says:
Hi Eric,
Thank you for your suggestion. That’s an idea I hadn’t considered. I have a friend who is out of the country off and on throughout the year and she may be up for car-sharing-ownership. Though I feel the car has to be quite near to both parties, if I have to get a taxi to the car then I will feel bad about the money! I am thinking out loud here!
I am not the best driver and the same friend has offered to put me on her insurance which I declined immediately as I would stress about damaging it.
Hmmmm, something to consider.
Thanks!
Tamara
September 30, 2019 — 8:58 am
Laura Trowern says:
We have got rid of ours. We live in Pompey. We work in or just off the island, easy to get to by bus. Our children are getting used to going by bike all the time! Like Eric said, we have the option to borrow a car from family and friends for when we really need a car. But, Day to day, we really don’t (& we have 2 kids under 7 to transport around!) You can do it. For our city. For our health. For my kids’ future. For the planet.
September 27, 2019 — 5:35 pm
Tamara says:
Hi Laura,
Thanks so much for your comment and cheering words! You and Eric are definitely swaying me towards living the bigger and better life.
Much appreciated,
Tamara
September 30, 2019 — 9:01 am
Sarah Gilbert says:
Hi Tamara! You could keep your car just in case but avoid using it as much as you can. Whilst it’s parked, it’s not emitting anything but you would know it’s there should you need it. After a while, you’ll know how often you need it and hopefully get used to not using it often. Then a car share or car club might seem more feasible. I’m currently having the same dilemma. x
September 27, 2019 — 6:49 pm
Tamara says:
Hi Sarah,
You and Emma are clever ones! She suggested something similar – to basically put my car in a garage or off road or just park it far from my house and not use it for a month.
I really associate the car with freedom and worry about feeling trapped, especially if I am in a depressive episode. I think going car-free for a month would help as a staged ditching.
Let me know what/if you decide to keep/ditch yours.
Thanks,
Tamara
September 30, 2019 — 9:04 am
Jayne says:
Hi Tamara,
I have a 2yr old daughter don’t have a car and never have. Portsmouth isn’t the best city for public transport and there isn’t any infrastructure for cycling.
I generally walk or get the bus (£18 pw)
I find the trains are almost too expensive and they are so badly run, There are always delays and I find this causes me a lot of stress.
October 2, 2019 — 4:45 pm
Tamara says:
Hi Jayne,
Thanks for your comment. It is so useful to get an insight into what it is like to be reliant on public transport with children.
I hear you about the expensive trains. I recently got the hovercraft (I know, not a train!) to the Isle of Wight and was so shocked at how much it cost! £20 for a day return and then £7 on buses to get from Ryde to Newport. Ooof!
Best,
Tamara (and Emma)
November 22, 2019 — 8:17 am