The Diminished Need for a Car

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Last Sunday I cycled betwen Nyon and Geneva, not once but twice. I cycled from Nyon to Geneva, passing close to my old school, before getting into Geneva. Once in Geneva I joined a group ride and we cycled from Geneva towards Divonne along a similar route to the one I had taken. We then stopped for coffee, and a pain au chocolat in my case, before riding back to Geneva, via the top, this time. Once this was done I cycled back towards Nyon along the lake until Mies, before climbing towards Coppet, and then heading back to the lake and Nyon. I then chased cars and managed to keep up, despite 100kms in my legs.

I was fresh, and without too much fatigue, despite the metric century. On other group rides we go between Nyon and the top of the Jura. In so doing I prove, on a regular basis that I can ride from A to B, on the bike, without the need for a car. That I can ride to Geneva and back twice, without feeling too tired, in a day, shows that commuting to Geneva is a reasonable proposition.

Cycling to the top of the Jura, once, to twice per week, shows that anywhere I go to regularly with a car, I can access by bike. I can also access them by train, if I am a little more patient.

The Amusing Shift

It amuses me to see the shift, from having a car-centric view of the world to having a pedestrian/cyclist view of the world. I know that it’s a 28 minute walk to the train station. I know that it’s a six minute ride down to Nyon, and around 10-12 minutes back. I also know which routes are for pleasure, and which are direct.

The Bus and Car distortion

If we take the tube, in London, or the car in many places, or buses and trains, we don’t get a real feel for distances. We know the way but we don’t know the climbs, the descents, the dangers, and the safe paths. We also don’t see the landscape in the same level of detail, or the sounds.

When you drive, you might think “I need to park opposite my destination.” Long ago my attitude changed to “The easy parking is here, and I can walk from here to there, and do.

I see people willing to wait five to ten minutes for a bus, for a journey, that on foot takes as long as the wait for the bus.

Expensive Parking To Push Away from Cars by Default

I believe that part of my shift away from driving was the cost of parking, for an entire day, while at work. When you park in Geneva and it costs 30-36 CHF per day, it becomes expensive and unappealing. That’s when my default reflex shifted from driving, to walking to catch the train, and then walking from the train station to the office. You save at least 15 CHF per day.

From Rock Climbing To Walking and Cycling

When you go rock climbing, and scuba diving, having a car really helps. With scuba diving, because diving gear is heavy, and being able to park at a dive site is convenient. With rock climbing it’s because rock climbing requires getting to places that buses and trains do not reach as readily.

When you switch from climbing and diving you switch from a sport that takes place a certain distance from home. You need that wall, both above water, and beneath. When you walk, and cycle, you can do it straight from home, in a loop. You only need the car in case of a mechanical failure of the bike. In my case the most recent mechanical failure is wheel spokes getting loose at the end of a 102km ride. I managed to resolve the problem well enough to ride the final kilometre, but I used the car to go to the bike shop.

And Finally

Today, as I drove back from booking a service for the car, I noticed that the segment of mobilité douce that I saw as dangerous now has bollards that make it impossible to do the manoeuvre that I considered to be very dangerous. I saw that segment as so dangerous, as a pedestrian, that I was tempted to stop walking along that route. Planners were not blind to the danger I saw, so they took action.

For a long time I had my house key and car key together, but for years now the car key is separate. When you don’t drive every day, the car key doesn’t have to be with you.

When I see the cost of changing from one season’s tyres to the next, and the cost of petrol, it’s tempting to sell the car and buy a cheap bike, where, if it is stolen, it is easy to replace.

It’s worth highlighting that I switched from the car to a petrol scooter, when I could, and a foot scooter and buses at another time. It is when the scooter was hit and damaged when I was rear-ended by a car that I caught the walking bug. I walked to see if the scooter was ready, and when the scooter was ready, and recovered, the habit of walking remained. It was reinforced over two summers, in one case because of a broken arm.

Now I am happy with these car eccentric habits.