Change my mode of transportation

Hi Okuchisan,

Good luck on changing your mode of transportation to public transit.  Riding the SkyTrain, especially if you are able to find a seat, gives you time to think and mentally prepare for the day.  If riding the SkyTrain takes too much time, you may want to consider Car Pool, so that you can share the gas expense with other riders.

I hope that this helps.

Good luck. 

You can also look into carsharing. Canadian locations can be found here: http://www.autoshare.com/ca/cl.html

Do you live too far to ride a bike? It's a fabulous way to get around and surprisingly fast. And the freedom of not worrying about gas prices or parking or sitting in traffic is a joy. In fact, I think I probably feel the same way about my bike as you do about your car (I'm just happy it doesn't burn fossil fuels...). If it's something you might be interested in but lack experience or could use some tips, I run a free one-day program for the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition to teach people what they need to know to use their bikes for transporation. You can find out more at www.vacc.bc.ca/bikeskills.

Good luck!

Bonnie

I just had a bit of an epiphany, myself. I have three vintage motorcycles in storage, varying from my daily rider, a '63 Honda Dream, to a '66 Puch project bike. I initially stored them because I was going back to school and didn't have the money, but now I can't bear the thought of burning gas.

So the epiphany? Google ethanol motorcycle.

Good luck, okuchisan!

just wondering - the thrill you get from cruising on your motorcycle, the freedom and aliveness that you describe.. how, or with what new activity do you plan to replace that?

i'm all for making environmentally friendly choices whenever there is a compulsion to do so. i just think they shouldn't be made at the expense of life-affirming practices; activities that dip us into a state of flow, a touch of the divine. isn't it those little tastes that reminds us what we are, and why this life and this earth are so precious in the first place?

so with gratitude to you for sacrificing your beloved gas-guzzlers, how can this community support you in making sure you replace the activity with something equally cool - something that fits with your values but offers the same kind of thrill?

Hi lincolnposte. That's such a great way to look at things. I often think of these things as giving something up and so it's a tough sell. I look forward to the response you get.

I haven't thought of anything yet, but the wheels are turning (but not using gasoline).

Wm

Well... its been one month since I gave up the car and started to commute by skytrain to work and I have to admit its been an interesting ride!  Thanks for all the comments.. and I really appreciated the comment on how to replace dipping into the divine.  Thankfully, it has been raining lately, but I will soon need to figure something else out to replace the sensation of chasing sunsets across open country... :-)

The first thing I have to say is that I honestly miss my car...  let me put this into perspective... sitting in a nice seat with a seat warmer, that is blissfully quiet and surrounded by music of my choice is something that is kinda hard to give up.  The other point is that as a car/motorcycle guy, I miss the smell of burnt hydrocarbons and petroleum products.  I know, I know, but please understand where I am coming from too.  You have to understand, I grew up in a household where all of us were exposed to cars at an early age.  Its much like the memories of home it can invoke amongst many of you when you smell freshly baked bread.  I on the other hand, have fond memories of working with my dad during childhood with the smell of engine degreaser, solvents, and gear oil...  ahhh... there's no place like home! But I digress, after an entire month taking public transportation, I thought that I would share my general observations...

Public transportation  - by definition it means you are sharing space as you travel TOGETHER.  Its funny how some people decide to deal with personal hygiene issues out in the open in front of all to see.  There was one specific instance when I though someone was going to cause themself a brain hemorrhage when one knuckle started to disappear... if this is obtuse, think nose and finger…

Personal space  -  although I have traveled to many countries where space is at a premium... after all, it is my countrymen who invented the capsule hotel where you rent a room (I am being quite liberal with this particular label I might add) for $20 to $40 for the privilege of sleeping in a coffin like contraption... only in Tokyo.  I've noticed that many people do not try to pay attention to their surroundings to adjust their 'footprint' on the skytrain.  For example, taking off their backpack, or making an effort to move to a position that helps create more room for the common good of those traveling on the train.

A sense of order  -  mind you, I am not a physics wiz but it stands to reason that if you let people off a train, it will create more room for others to enter the train.  Unless you are a errant commuting blackhole trying to get to an alternative universe, but again I digress.  Although it has been many years, I remember my physics professor demonstrating the laws of volume by filling containers with marbles... but for some reason people try to rush on without letting people that want to get off the train off.  hmm... maybe they skipped physics much like I skipped phys ed all throughout high school... 

However, I don't want to paint a picture of public transportation as complicated or difficult.  Just really a change of perspective.  These points are more "Seinfield" observations meant to poke fun more at my experiences rather than complain about alternative forms of transportation, so please take them with a grain of salt or should I say grain of humor?  sorry really, really bad joke!

Overall, I feel better getting to work, I am more relaxed, I get a little exercise walking to the skytrain, I feel more like a part of the neighbourhood as I walk through the area each morning and evening, and I even bump into a few friends to exchange pleasantries in the morning. 

Please remember these are only random ramblings from one individual in this great universe, but if we maybe took heed to these three principles maybe we could get more people to change... but is it ok to admit that I still miss my car?  :-)

Ok... one more to add... when did people stop covering their mouths before they cough?  I know Vancouver is a city about sharing, but come on people... I have to draw the line at projectile coughs where I almost have to bring my umbrella out to protect myself from "droplets" inside the skytrain... lol

okuchisan,

We need more brave people like you to show the courage to change towards the NEW MORALITY (living sustainably) despite an engrained old way of thinking.  I'd guess that most people who've already given up their SOV weren't so emotionally attached to your vehicle as you are.  So you are the true hero and I hope others can learn from your example through this conversation.

I've given up my CO2 machine twice.  The first time, I was caught in the snow my first trip by bicycle.  This time, even in the rain, I just look at the gas price signs and smile ... wondering when other people will wake up.  Hopefully you can continue to find lots of positive aspects of travelling with a crowd, including things to laugh at. 

I've been thinking that we need to give people that are making sustainable lifestyle changes a pin they can wear to highlight their change to everyone else ... and one day (onedayvancouver.ca) there will be as many people wearing these pins as poppies.

Good luck facing your Dad at Christmas dinner explaining how you've given up on what he taught you.  Maybe you can still play grease monkey on friends' cars. 

There's always carpooling once in a while!

We're pulling for you.  Continue to celebrate your change!

So... its now been four months. I can't believe that I have made it this far. Thanks again for all your kind words of support.

I have to admit secretly to you all though... I feel like a crack addict who is looking for their next fix and I think I am about to blow.

I need the feel of supple leather on my scrawny asian bum, the warmth of a two position heater with a touch sensitive switch, the BOSE seven speaker stereo that has been accoustically tuned, and not the least of all the feeling of a good internal combustion engine at the command of my right foot... lol.

To make it all the worse, my motorcycle is waiting for that first day of spring so that I could at least take her out for a wheelie or two and chase some sunsets. I have a premonition of a facial tick or a nervous twitch developing shortly... if you see an asian walking/commuting downtown to work with a facial tick or nervous twitch as they pass you, you'll know it is me. :-)

Take heart, your many years of grease-monkitude are not going to waste - at least one knows where to go when she needs advice on finding a used hubcap for her rarely driven-but-deeply-loved VW. 

Hey there -- I did the same about 12 years ago. The first 4 years hurt. Now, I can't really imagine going back ... although interestingly, I literally started to dream about a BMW convertible last summer. What's up with that?

Once you start getting the transit system (took at least 2 years), things get easier. There are still some routes that are brutal - getting to Kerrisdale and Oak street is almost impossible.  If enough of us do what you're doing, and break the image of public-transit-is-for-the-poor-and-we-don't-care, and instead turn it into 'this is the cool way to get around, people.  what?  Are you STILL driving around in your sov??" ... anyway, I'd love enough public support to exert political pressure to really ramp up our systems.  The B-Lines rock and I'm pleased on the whole with skytrains, but there's a long way to go to make it a system everyone prefers to their cars.

Musings: 

The down sides: yup, seeing some pretty gross stuff. Getting stuck waiting. And waiting. In the rain. Making you late for something important. Surly drivers. Nutters who want to talk instead of giving you space. Leaving something. Losing your pass.

The upsides: seriously - leaving a smaller footprint. Learning to read on the skytrain/bus. Great drivers who go out of their way to be kind, or friendly. Unexpectedly meeting a friend on board. Just having some 'alone' time (ironic) to stare out the window without having to think.

Anyway, I'm out there with you. Also, with you on the being 'present'. See other post!

So... it has been over a year now commuting to and fro to work and the facial tick seems to have left me.

Tell you what.  I'll let you in on a little secret.  This is between you and me.  Don't tell my car guy friends.  I actually enjoy commuting by walking and alternative transportation.  Granted there are occasional inconveniences when the skytrain fails due to heavy rain, technical glitches or some snow, but I view this as a challenge.  How to get my tush home in a creative way.

Its funny... the occasional times I do end up driving, I actually don't like it anymore.  I don't get to participate in the community that surrounds me.  It insulates me from what my neighbours are doing and encourages me to not be a participant.  Cars are like a cocoon.  Like sensory deprivation on wheels.  I guess that is why I love my motorcycle, I get to participate in the environment yet still get that rush of power as those two cylinders combust under me.

I've finally come to realize that the new crop of cars are encouraging us to become more and more insular.  Quiet and reliable, they silently and wordlessly encourage us to become more self-absorbed.  Hmm... epiphany... do modern cars encourage people to become more self-absorbed as they are much more quiet with double pained windows and better sound insulation?  But I digress...

I guess there is hope for us after all.  Me and my feet.  If a gear head like me can give up a car, then, why not the regular masses of non-'automobilistas'?  With crude oil hitting $100 a barrel today maybe it will be the tipping point where people begin to search for alternatives and realize that it is not so bad.  Granted there are inconveniences and I still need a car from time to time, but with all forms of transportation there always are trade offs.  I've traded oil changes, car service repair bills, and insurance costs with visiting my shoe repair guy a little more often to replace worn shoes versus brake shoes (old skool car lingo for the car guys).  Me thinks not such a raw deal.

This will likely be my last blog I post on this thread.  So thanks for reading, thanks for participating, and thanks to all of you for those words of encouragement as I made the transition.

Signed, the converted gear head.