Roody

This forum is not about a carfree identity, at least not for most of us. Actually, IMO there is no such thing as a carfree tribe, or even a carfree movement. There's just a few individuals who enjoy using cars less. We're just normal people who happen to enjoy driving less, and talking about our experiences along these lines with one another.

LCF is not about a movement or a tribal identity!

I used to drive, and now I don't drive. But I'm still the same person that I was when I drove. The only difference is that now I don't drive, and I enjoy talking about it.

I don't give a fig if you drive 10 million miles a week. You can drive to the moon and I would be very OK with it. But don't talk about your moon trip here because this forum is not about driving. It's about NOT DRIVING!

BTW, this is the only time/place that I talk about LCF. My friends and relatives aren't very interested in the subject. I'm just happy that the internet gives us a place where we can talk about these things that are of interest to really only a small section of the population.

And you do not have to be carfree 24/7, since carfree living is an experience, or set of experiences--not an identity that requires total devotion and purity. I LIVE carfree most of the time, but that doesn't mean I AM carfree. I AM the same person whether I'm in a car, bike, or walking!

This sounds pretty simple, but there are a good number of people here who just don't get it.

ironwood

There are billions of people on this planet who don't drive. For a lot of them being able to buy a car and drive is their dream. A few live in urban areas where are car is as much of an encumbrance as it is useful.

I bet NYC has the most car free people in the US, but most of them don't bother to talk about it.

tandempower

I always appreciate your peaceful POV on this matter, Roody. Whenever people start pushing discussions in the directions of identity and status, you know it's for the sake of diminishing people for being less than 100% carfree, or to make stereotypes about carfree people, etc. The fact is that many people's minds are driven primarily by identity and status issues. They compete for pride and the spoils that come with social validation over others. So when they've adopted a cultural mindset that status is achieved by how good a car you drive, which is a symbol of how much income you have to pay for it, which supposedly corresponds to how hard a worker you are, etc. then it throws a monkey wrench in your gears to think that driving in general might not be the ultimate form of superiority, where the person with the best car(s) is the absolute winner of the status games.

cooker

But if they want to they can talk about it here. Or that is the supposed idea.

FBinNY 

I agree wholeheartedly.

Living car free is a personal choice (or not) made for any number or combination of reasons. They may be personal, political, financial, or whatever. The only thing that LCF folks have in common is the fact that they are LCF.

In fact, the OP and I have one less thing in common, in that I don't especially like talking about it. I simply don't consider LCF especially worthy of conversation. I talk about it when asked, but that's about it. I used to be more active here in the LCF forum because it's in my nature to try to solve problems, and I posted about that when apropos. But, the tribalism got to me and I moved to friendlier places.

Walter S

It's especially good for the rare breed of masochist that thrive on being dismissed with sarcasm and personal ridicule

Walter S

Some people are carfree in an area where almost everybody drives everywhere. Maybe they grow up driving too but want to be carfree. This is a place they can find like minded people when otherwise it's a lonely lifestyle to figure out and most people think you're insane.

wolfchild

I used to be car-free in an area where 99% of the population drives.



This is the place for discussing alternative reality... Majority of normal car-free people and cyclists out there don't come and hang out in this place or this sub-forum, and for a good reason.... Judging by some of the topics, ideas and proposals posted and discussed by few regulars on this list, I don't think any normal car-free people have anything in common with some of the alternative reality scenarios being discussed on this forum.

cooker

You're always here and I assume you consider yourself normal. Since you're interested in LCF and have done it, why don't you start some threads or otherwise share your ideas?

wipekitty

Good topic.

At one point, this subforum seemed distinct from Commuting and Utility Cycling because Commuting is about riding your bike to work, whether occasionally or all the time, Utility Cycling is about running errands and hauling things on a bike, whether occasionally or all the time, whereas LCF is about using a bicycle for transportation, either all the time or in conjunction with other options distinct from private vehicle ownership.

The information on this subforum was very helpful to me at that point. Likewise, I enjoyed reading about the experiences that people had while not driving - things you otherwise might not experience or notice.

Same here. Things started to get a bit too nasty for my taste, and I have little interest in discussing the pros and cons of cars. I like discussing bikes and how they can make your life better, and I "prefer to use alternative transportation...for everyday activities whenever possible."

Machka 

Interestingly, when I was car free, I rarely talked about it ... it was just something I did. It was the transportation choice that made the most sense then.

I'm car light now, and try "to use alternative transportation...for everyday activities whenever possible." and I'd prefer to hear more about what people are actually doing while being car light or car free ... especially if it relates to cycling.

Tell stories, post pictures ... make living car free or car light look attractively possible.

350htrr

Going cold turkey is hard to do... I am pretty sure 99% of the people on here want to "reduce" their car/vehicle dependence... BUT, the reason there are car threads on here IS, because there IS an In-Between step, most people NEED to take, because of society's fixation on car culture at the expense of everything else makes it difficult to swim up-stream... .

At least that is where I find myself struggling to reduce my car dependence...

StarBiker

FBinNY 

There's no need to explain, or at least not to me. But I don't believe that that many people want to reduce their car dependence. Of course, some are like yourself, but many others have found some equilibrium at some level and are comfortable with that.

IMO- the crux of the issue as regards ill feelings in this forum is the difference between a choice or status (ie car free or light) and a value judgement or goal that folks "should" strive for.

It's the difference between what we do and what we are.

I happen to be car free, but I don't identify as such. It's just a descriptive, like living in a house vs. an apartment, being self-employed vs having a job, or any of hundreds of things people do or don't do.

So, while I used to come here to discuss the reality of going car free, I'm not interested in the reasons that people do so, nor debate about the social consequences of doing so. In short, while I have some interest in the subject, I simply don't care enough about it to deal with the acrimony that pops up here so often.

wolfchild

When I was car-free I never boasted about my lifestyle as if it was some badge of honour or something. I just went about my own business and did what needed to be done on daily basis...Never discussed my car-free lifestyle with anybody unless somebody asked questions about it.

cooker

What's your interest in the forum?

wolfchild

To bust up some myths and misconceptions about living car-free which are preached by few self-righteous individuals on this list.

cooker

Let's have a respectful thread on that topic - in fact, I'm going to start it.

Roody

I think you're smart and nice, but a little naive. Many of the car threads here are from people who wrongly believe that their automobile "tribe" is being attacked by people who want to be carfree or carlight. They feel threatened because they think their own tribe (motorists) is under some kind of attack.

Of course, as you can read on this thread and many others, most carfree people do not mean to attack or undermine others in any way. We just want the freedom to live our own lives as we see fit. That's not revolutionary exactly! And we, most of us, live perfectly ordinary lives in regards to everything BUT the transportation we choose.

Roody

That's exactly the same for me! And if you read the posts on this thread, you'll see that several others have said the same thing.

I have never even used the word "carfree" outside of this forum. I only started using it because that was the label that the bikeforums management came up with when they started this subforum. I have reasons to be carfree that work for me. But wanting to identify with some carfree tribe is not among those reasons. I don't see why you can't seem to understand this very simple fact. (For you are definitely one of the people I had in mind when I started this thread.)

BTW, if you have the email of the Carfree Tribe, please forward it to me. I don't want to join the tribe, but I bet it would be fun to party with them!

Machka 

You can contact them through their Facebook page ... don't forget to check their Events!

SHBR

More than just a few, try a few million in any major city in China.

Yet, it is becoming an ever present status symbol, many people subconsciously make judgements about the kind of car you drive, and the lifestyle that may or may not live.

I feel sorry for those who become debt slaves in order to fit in with car culture.

cooker

All I can find is a Polish car rental company called Car Free

Machka 

Really? Huh ... maybe you've got to try a different search term or change a setting or something.

cooker

What is the search term?