Life without a car: How everyday mobility works even without your own vehicle
Like almost all children of my generation, I grew up with cars—and often in them. My parents owned three at one point. For trips, visits, or shopping trips, the engine was always fired up. We went on vacation in a camper van, often covering thousands of kilometers. In the front yard, there was a retired Karmann Ghia, and behind the wheel I dreamed of driving on highways in faraway lands. Or reading comics.
Barely 18 years old, I got my driver's license. My first long trip was to Paris – in true style, in a Citroen 2CV, popularly known as the "Cougar 2CV." Even as a student, I had to have my own car. The used Golf cost only a few thousand marks, but it served me well for a surprisingly long time.
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I worked as a delivery driver and drove a small van in my first job. Later, with my own family, the cars grew and became my parents' taxis for trips to music school or away games.
I know how convenient it is to spontaneously drive somewhere in your own car. Transporting bulky items and several people. Cruising along the Mediterranean coast, singing loudly with the music turned up.
Driving toward the glowing, snow-capped Alps at sunrise. Curling up in a sleeping bag on the back seat. Having hours of conversation about anything and everything while the landscape glides by. There's no question: Your own car is flexible, offers freedom and comfort, and allows for small adventures.
Germans are buying more and more cars. Currently, an average of 1,000 citizens own 590 cars. In large federal states like Saarland and Bavaria, car ownership is almost twice as high as in the city-states of Berlin and Bremen. The total number of cars is almost 50 million – more than ever before in Germany. There are now more than three times as many as in 1970 and almost twice as many as in 1980. Only since 2000 has the increase ceased to be sudden, but has been moderate. The trend for electric cars, however, is different: their sales have risen sharply in recent years. Almost one in five registered cars is now electric.
On the other hand, a disturbing feeling crept in on the many journeys: having to constantly concentrate is exhausting. Traffic became more hectic over the years, and aggression increased. On monotonous motorway journeys, I counted the kilometers. Then I fell asleep for the first time. Near misses kept coming. Vehicles wedged together on the motorway, leaving serious injuries and deaths.
In the city, there's the irritating stop-and-go traffic. The desperate search for parking. More and more cars taking up space in public spaces. And then there was this environmental debate. First, it was forest dieback, later it became a bigger picture: Climate change is now threatening us humans existentially and globally. And the car is part of the problem.
Dennis Dombrowski lives with his wife and three children in a town near Hanover with a population of around 31,000. A few months ago, they sold their ten-year-old car. It had been sitting almost unused anyway, says the 45-year-old: "It doesn't make sense for ecological reasons, either." He and his wife commute to work by train. They cover the last few meters on a folding or rental bike. In the small town, they can cover almost all journeys by bike, and a cargo bike is available for shopping. "We can reach all local destinations within ten minutes. Often even faster than by car," reports the father. If a car is needed for visiting relatives, for example, car sharing is used. One option is an electric car, which the family might otherwise have purchased themselves. However, the spontaneity has been somewhat lost, says Dennis Dombrowski: "We need to plan a bit more in advance." He also needs to come up with a solution for large transports—in the fall, for example, there's a lot of garden waste. Nevertheless, so far, the family hasn't missed their own car.
As a result, my guilty conscience increasingly accompanied me on my commutes: "Can you still take responsibility for this?" it whispered in my ear. "Isn't there another way?" it demanded. "Yes, of course," I replied, intimidated. "But since it's already here? Besides, I'm in a hurry, and—and anyway: On the way back, I can pick up a load of organic compost from the recycling center! Take that, guilty conscience!"
From then on, his charming brother, the one with the good intentions, got in touch and had more success: I'd always enjoyed cycling. I did it more often now. We already had a child trailer; we could also use it to transport shopping and even Christmas trees. For longer journeys, we chose the train. And when it wasn't possible without a car, we used car sharing.
When an expensive repair was due, we sold our own car. We usually managed well. But sometimes the children were left crying at home because I had to quickly pick up the rental car. Train journeys with lots of luggage and a baby in diapers aren't subject to entertainment tax. When our father-in-law then offered us his old car, our goodwill was shattered.
But as the children grew older, the rides with them became less frequent. Cycling became increasingly fun. I enjoyed, and still enjoy, the exercise in the fresh air and it keeps me physically fit. Appropriate clothing protects me from rain and cold.
Many destinations in the city are even faster to reach by bike than by car. The bike often sat unused for days, even weeks. There were still costs, such as insurance and vehicle tax. When we had to buy a new battery because we were using the bike too infrequently, we had had enough – we simply gave it away to relatives.
That was almost ten years ago. I haven't missed my own car for a single day. Quite the opposite: It felt like a liberation. I experience less stressful journeys, don't have to search for parking spaces, and expensive repairs and regular MOT appointments are a thing of the past.
On average, a car costs about €400 a month – without ever being driven a single meter. With that money, we can afford high-quality bicycles and occasionally rent a car. Whether it's a cargo bike, electric car, or van: car sharing gives me access to various vehicle types.
With the Deutschlandticket, train and bus travel is affordable and flexible; the German fare jungle no longer concerns me. For the last mile, I can use a folding bike or an e-scooter. As a city dweller, I benefit from a good public transport network and frequent service. People who live in more rural areas have it much harder.
If I want to go far away, I take the train. It's a surprisingly quick way to reach many destinations. Getting to Vienna takes about eight hours – that's a tough trip by car. Of course, I have to be prepared for unpleasant surprises like missed connections. But I'm taking it in stride.
And how often have I been stuck in traffic in my car and arrived at my destination later than expected, exhausted? On long train journeys, I can read, sleep, work, eat, or simply gaze dreamily out the window. I often meet nice people with whom I strike up conversations. And as for the environmental impact: I'm allowed to feel guilty about that! I travel in an almost exclusively climate-friendly way – without feeling like I have to forgo anything or restrict myself.
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