Driving a car is expensive. Let’s put car payments aside and think about gas, oil changes, maintenance schedules, insurance – I can go on, but you get the picture. Owning a car is one big money pit. It’s a loosing proposition beginning the moment you drive it off the lot. But there is no escaping the need to get around so in many instances owning a car is a necessity. But that doesn’t mean we have to drive it everywhere. In actuality, the less you drive it the less money you loose or risk loosing. But how else can you get around? Well, for short distances and urban commuting there is no better way than biking. It’s safe, environmentally friendly, economical, and I can go on, but you get the picture. It has so many benefits over driving a car it isn’t even close.
So why are there still so many cars on the roads vs. bikes? It’s simple, I think, and that is that cycling requires effort and driving a car is more comfortable. That’s horrible, isn’t it? But I think it’s probably true. The other theory I have is that biking makes one sweat. Sweating is icky especially if you sweat in the morning in the clothes you have to wear all day. Yuck.
Those excuses are poor when considering the big picture. Think about our biggest threat right now, which is climate change. Two of the biggest factors are methane gas and pollution. One is a result of our increased meat intake and the other is a result of all the things we make and use that need to be disposed of shortly upon purchase because they have a short lifespan. That said, climate change is a big man-made problem with two very simple solutions. One is to stop eating meat and the other is stop using so many things you don’t really need so often. And decreasing our reliance on automobile transportation should be atop of the list of disposable creature comforts because automobiles in general are big climate offenders and big personal money pits.
